There was no choice to make
by LumiMoher
Summary: It was no secret that Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak came from completely different worlds; Oliver was the billionaire playboy/arrow-shooting vigulante, Felicity was the smart, babbling IT-girl. None of them knew how their future together looked. Maybe they were destined to be together as crime-fighting partners in their self-named Team Arrow or maybe they were meant for more...
1. Prologue: My Frozen Lake

**Prologue**

_0I'm standing on my frozen lake._

It was no secret that Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak came from completely different worlds; Oliver was the billionaire playboy who had taken over Queen Consolidated with hope to restore the Queen name to its former glory, he was every women´s dream and all the men either wanted to be him or they hated his guts.

While Felicity was only a middle-class person, struggling with everyday issues and working at the IT-department at QC. She wasn´t the type of girl Oliver would choose, as she had been told her whole life...

Although, these facts were only scratching the surface.

_Your frozen lake is the name for what you want the most in the world and you want it, you want it so bad that you'll do anything to get it. _

_And your heart takes over. _

Oliver had been trapped on an island for five years, after being shipwrecked and seeing his father kill himself. He had been tortured in the most horrific ways and he had gone to hell and back before he finally could find his back home to Starling City. There he had put on a facade; acting like the charming billionaire playboy he was by day, and by night he turned into a completely different person, fighting the low-lifes of Starling City with the help of a bow and arrow.

He had been forced to witness part of Starling crumble to the ground, a horrific plan made up by Malcolm Merlin and Moira Queen, Oliver´s mother. This was the one thing of Oliver's crucade he couldn´t prevent and he felt like he had failed his father. As it was by the promise of his father that Oliver had survived on the island, made his way back and started fighting the criminals of Starling City.

Felicity had also gone through some tough times, but it wasn´t something she was willing to tell anyone – yet if ever. And she was helping Oliver in his crucade to save his city with her high-tec IT-skills – and also in his facade as the CEO of Queen Consolidated, only there she was his executive assistant, which had got her in trouble, not to mention the rumours that were circling around about the two of them. These had surfaced the second Isabel Rochev entered the company in her failed (first, sure she had a devilish plan coming down her sleeve) attempt to take over QC.

Felicity looked to Oliver for comfort, she found him attractive - but then again, who in their right mind wouldn´t think he was drop dead gorgeous, with those piercing baby blue eyes of his, which could melt even the coldest icy heart. His smile was also famous.

And Oliver had come to Felicity´s rescue more than once, the last time when she had been taken hostage by The Count and Oliver had killed him with three arrows. This had been his first kill in over five months, since The Undertaking and Tommy´s death. To honor Tommy´s memory, Oliver hadn´t killed since then.

Felicity had known by the look on Oliver´s face after he´d shot the arrows, that he was hurting, like he had failed Tommy and she had apologized to him later than evening, apologized for being the one who forced Oliver to kill again. Oliver had then taken her hand in his, looked at her intensely and said '_He had you and he was going to hurt you_' and then he had lower his voice_, 'There was no choice to make_'.

_But because of that, it destroys you in the end. _

_It's right there, just sitting in the middle of this frozen lake, and you think you're fast enough to go out and grab it before the ice cracks._

Oliver might look to Felicity as only a good friend, he was still too damaged after everything that happened on the island, with the undertaking that took his best friend's life and for which Oliver felt guilty to see her as something more. Or maybe he did have feelings for her but he hadn´t admitted this to himself yet.

He had been involved with several women...

Helena, even though that had turned out to be a total disaster and Oliver´s feelings had taken over his better judgement;

McKenna, but she had moved away to Coast City after being injured (by Helena, ironically enough) on a job and that had broken Oliver´s heart as he really had cared for her;

and last but most definatley not least – Laurel. The relationship with Laurel was more complicated then ten ways to Sunday, and they had been doing this on/off thing for a while before finally getting together in the end, but the aftermath of Tommy´s tragic death had been too painful for them both.

_And what you don't realize is you're already standing on the ice and it's falling apart around you._

Neither Oliver or Felicity knew how their paths would cross in the end. Maybe they were destined to be together as crime-fighting partners in their self-named _Team Arrow_... or maybe the stars had something totally of the opposite planned for them...


	2. Ep 1

**Chapter 1**

As Felicity was walking, no, tripping... due to her high heels, not that she wasn´t used to wearing high heels, these particular ones happened to be extremely high heeled and uncomfortable for walking a longer while... at the snowfilled streets on her way to Fairmont Hotel, this ridiculously posh and over-the-top expensive hotel where tonight´s gala, one of the most exclusive ones, would be held. She would be waiting at Oliver on the corner of the Fairmont Hotel.

"I wonder why he couldn´t had picked me up directly from my appartment... or atleast let me go inside somewhere to wait for him..." Felicity mumbled. "I don´t see anyone tripping around in the snow, dressed in haute courture..."

Felicity hadn´t believed her eyes when Oliver had told her that they would go together, both as representives for Queens Consolidated _('So you couldn´t have taken Isabel instead, wouldn´t look so... out of place_' Felicity had said, trying to talk Oliver out of the plan but he had only given her one of his mesmerizing gazes and that had been the end of the discussion + Isabel was appearently out of town, she had gone to Shanghai to visit the Asian head quarters of Queen Consolidated) but also as Team Arrow. Not that they were looking into something particular, not what Felicity knew of, Oliver had only stated Felicity´s presence at the gala would be needed.

Felicity felt like she had the rights to be worried, no one would in ther right mind think she had been invited to one of the most exclusive galas in Starling City as nothing else as the date of Oliver Queen, especially since the majority of the guests would be the absolute elite of Starling – for instance, like Oliver Queen.

Felicity thought she had managed pretty awesome with her outfit for the evening – a beautiful dress with a high-low hemline, lace-structured with rose corded lace panels and beautiful embroided diamonds on full skirt with net and tulle under layers from Oscar de la Renta. She had paired this with Gemfield's emerald stud earrings, a glittering diamond necklace from Bulgari and Manolo Blahnik 5" heels. She was starting to regret the height of the heels now, as she learned now by continuasly walking in the snow.

She had done her own make up, nothing over the top and she had got her hair done (by a hair stylist at a salon near QC) into a pretty chignon updo, with deep side part and a couple of wispy pieces to make it all a bit more modern and flirty. The flirty idea had been the hair stylist´s idea, as Felicity didn´t see tonight as anything else than a work function. A very... luxurious, top notch work function.

When Felicity had been in touch with the respective labels putting her outfit together, she of course hadn´t mentioned that _she _was the one who would be wearing it or that she was an executive assistant, she had only stated that she had an important client who was attending the event at the Fairmont in Starling City and she needed to look over the top fabolous – because her date for the evening would be Oliver Queen.

She had been afraid to look on the price tags for everything, as she with her own salary could hardly afford it as she knew that they all were top notch brands... Good think she had Oliver then, he had promised to take care of the post, whatever it would be.

This sounded weird when she thought about it and she shook her head. "This is a bad idea, really bad idea..." Felicity mumbled to herself as she continued tripping towards the hotel.

It was a bad idea _overall_ for Felicity to be turning up at the event _at all_ because... What would people think? Sure, they might accept her as Oliver Queen´s date for the evening but no one would believe that they were... _together_. There would be media representives at the event for sure, paparazzis most certainly... What would people think when they saw Felicity at a luxurious event like the Fairmont gala?

"What have you got yourself into?" Felicity mumbled as she now reached the corner away from the Fairmont Hotel, shivering from the cold and envying the guests who arrived straight to the entrance by limousine, one looking more over the top than the other. If it was an event for the Starling Elite, nothing was too much - appearently.

Oliver had arrived to the Fairmont Hotel and was now making his way to the corner where Felicity was waiting for him. As he was slowly making his way through the crowd, he heard a familiar voice calling for him:

"Oliver, hi!"

He stopped and turned around to stand face to face with some random-looking guy and... Laurel. She looked different from what he was used to, she was so dressed up now, with an embroidered halter gown and a thick, glittering neckless around her neck.

"Laurel." Oliver smiled and leaned in to give her a friendly peek on the cheek – something that Laurel´s date didn´t approve off, judging by the look on his face that Oliver could clearly see in the corner of his eye. He paid no attention to him.

"Are you here alone?" Laurel asked, not being able to hide her surprise to see Oliver _alone _at an event, especially an event like this.

"I´m just about to go meet my date, actually." Oliver said. "I don´t want to keep her waiting so... Have a good night." and with that he walked away, leaving Laurel quite stunned that he had been so short. She couldn´t wait to see who his date was, she had to be something _very _special to have that kind of impact on Oliver Queen.

Oliver had now reached the corner where Felicity would be waiting. He looked around to see where she was and his jaw almost dropped to the ground when he saw her slowly walking towards him. She noticed him and gave him a light wave and a smile. Oliver could now see she had trouble walking, so he went to meet her and took her hand.

"Felicity, you look..." He started, not really sure what to say. She looked beautiful, yes, and so different from how he was used to see her. "You look beautiful."

"Good evening, Oliver." Felicity said and smiled. "You cleaned up pretty good yourself." She looked him up and down, noticing the black suit. "Black wins over green tonight, huh?"

Oliver smiled at her failed attempt to make an Arrow-joke. "Tommy Hilfiger doesn´t have vigulante suits as part of their... expertise." He took her hand and placed it under his arm. "Ready to make an entrance?"

Felicity looked back at him, taking a deep breath. "Yes. Lead the way, Mr Queen." As they were about to start walking, she added quickly: "Could we take it slow, though? 5" heels and winter don´t really go together..."

Oliver sighed and smirked at Felicity.

At the penthouse on the very top of the Fairmont Hotel, someone was looking down on the guests making their entrance, sweeping over the crowd with a telescope-like binocular - until one face stood out. A second later the same crowd and the familiar face showed up on gigantic TV screens.

A knock on the door and a man stepped in. His eyes immediatly flew to the computer screens and he frowned. Like the character standing in front of him, he had also noticed the face, the one he knew from several surveillance fotage, photos and old movie tapes that he had studied for countless hours.

"Well?"

"Everything is in order. We will be ready soon." His eyes went to the TV screen again. "Is that...?"

"It seems that way, yes." One click was heard and a closer look on the face was seen. "It looks like an old friend has decided to join us." Another click and the footage on the TV screens went back to following the crowd.

"Give me reports by the hour on how it´s progressing. And keep a special eye on our friend here, I want to know everything that happens."

"Of course." The man said and left, closing the door behind him.


	3. Ep 2 - Tell a man he is brave, and you h

**Chapter 2**

"**Tell a man he is brave, and you help him to become so**"

_Thomas Carlyle_

_When Felicity was seven years old, her parents Matt and Elena split up and Matt left. At the time, Felicity was devastated that her father left but now, thinking back, she understood why – her parents hadn't been happy in very long time and after many years of fighting, tears and heartbreak, Elena couldn't take it any longer, so she gave Matt some sort of ultimatum (Felicity never found out what it was, as Elena didn't speak much of Matt after the divorce) and he left._

_After the divorce, which surprisingly well without any fighting, Felicity didn't see Matt very often, besides on birthdays and holidays. Matt was working a lot and Elena didn't want him in the house much. Felicity had no idea why that was, her mother had grown to be very distant and cold towards Matt since the divorce._

_When Felicity was nine, Matt left Starling City in favour to Poland where he'd got a new job. He visited Starling atleast once a year until Felicity was 13. Matt also asked Felicity and Elena to come to Poland for a visit but Elena refused. Nevertheless the few times they got to see eachother, Matt wanted to have a good relationship with Felicity, so while in Poland he sent post cards now and then from Poland, birthday cards and a few letters. In one of the letters, Felicity learned that Matt had fallen in love a woman named Rebekah. They eventually got married and from what Felicity had learned in the letters Matt wrote her, he was happy with Rebekah and their family that grew as time went by._

_For Felicity's 15th birthday, Matt wanted her to come to Poland on her own, so she could celebrate her birthday with Matt, Rebekah and their two small children. Felicity was so excited about this but Elena refused to let her go and after that Felicity's conctact with her father decreased – until she didn't hear from him at all. The last time Felicity heard from her father, she was 18 and he sent her a short 'My condolences'-card. Felicity threw the card in the trash without opening it._

Felicity had no idea why she was thinking about her parents and childhood _right now_, when she was enjoying herself at the most fabolous event she had ever been to – and probably the last event ever of this sort she would be able to attend – and she was thinking about the two people in her life who only had given her nothing but misery during the past years of her life.

She was sitting at the table sipping on the most amazing champagne - this was her third glass already, and before the champagne it had been wine so she was starting to feel a little bit tipsy.

She and Oliver had been enjoying the most delicious six-coursed dinner: (1) pan-fried foie gras in a Marsala reduction with brown sugar baked apple (2) beef filet tenderloin carpaccio with caper berries, herbs and Parmegiano (3) a mixed greens salad with avocado, strawberries, watermelon, red seedless grapes and homemade balsamic vinaigrette dressing (4) homemade ravioli with the filling of the day, paparadelle pasta with Alba Piemonte-region white truffle (5) Spanish-style grilled lamb chops with roasted herb potatoes, sauteed paiche filet with purple potatoes, palm hearts and lucuma saffron foam (6) Swiss hazelnut chocolate torte.

Fairmont Hotel... She couldn't believe she was here! It was so fantastic and amazing to be at an event like this, surrounded with people that either looked like supermodels or as if they had come from Hollywood. She had imagined how it could look in her mind, but the reality was so much better. It was magical!

"I must be dreaming..." She thought.

She looked around and saw Oliver. He was having a discussion with a couple of suit-and-tie-dressed men. Felicity made a guess they were talking about business, Oliver was after all the co-CEO of the most talked about company in Starling. Since Felicity knew Oliver's alter-ego as the arrow-shooting vigulante, it was a bit... odd seeing him like this – but it suited him. He looked relaxed and, for once, genuainly happy. Seeing him calm, happy and satisfied made _her _calm, and satisfied. It had been a completly other story when they had arrived, walking down the _red carpet_.

When they first had entered the Fairmont Hotel, everyone's looks had been on them: the men had looked at Felicity like she was some supermodel, the women had been mesmerized by Oliver but shot evil looks at her and the camera flashes had gone off like mad, making Felicity's head spin a little. Felicity had unknowingly tightened her grip around Oliver's arm so hard from nervousity, that he had flinched with pain.

"Felicity!..." He had whispered. "Mind letting go of my arm a bit, please?"

"Sorry." She had apologized. "I just... This is _totally _out of my comfort zone..."

"Don't worry, Felicity, you will do fine-"

"Yeah, until I trip because of these ridicolous high heels, rip my dress that was over the top over-priced or spill expensive wine on some society elite..."

Oliver noticed that Felicity was clearly nervous, no, she was freaking out. Her hands were shaking, her nails were moments from cutting through his arm, she kept biting her lip and she looked pale. When they had walked down the red carpet and had stepped into the huge ball room, he then stopped her, took her aside and looked at her.

"Felicity... Hey. You _will_ do fine. You're the most beutiful woman here tonight." He took her hand, stroaking it gently with his thumb. "I will be by your side the whole evening, I promise."

He then had leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. He then looked at her, seeing she was calmer already.

Felicity smiled to herself. Oliver was great on calming her down, it worked for most of the time. Although, she wasn't sure what that last kiss on the cheek had been about... She wasn't sure what to think of it, she had felt a tiny tingle as his lips had touched her cheek but... She shook her head, no, she wouldn't go _there_.

She looked Oliver's way again, he was still chatting to the suit-and-ties. All of a sudden, he looked her way, smiled and it cut her a little of guard. She smiled back and now Oliver seemed to excuse himself from the suit-and-ties and came her way again.

"Hey. Sorry for leaving you, these guys over there are... possible investors for QC." He grinned. "Also, if Isabel found out I didn't talk to a single one of the investors and acted as the QC representive I am... Well, there would be blood. How are you doing?"

"I'm perfect..." Felicity smiled. "Really, Oliver, thank you for taking me tonight. Although, I think that the champagne is getting to me." She let out a tiny giggle, which made Oliver smirk.

"My pleasure, I'm happy you're enjoying yourself." He sat down next to Felicity. "You may want to be careful with the champagne and drink water instead."

"Yes. We wouldn't want me to make a complete fool out of me, would we now?" Felicity said.

"No. I simply want you to be steady on your feet so we can go up on the dance floor. I would like to dance with you, you know."

Felicity frowned. Where the hell did this come from? "Oh... Okay."


	4. Ep 3 - Si l'amour n'est qu'une illusion,

**Chapter 3**

"**Si l'amour n'est qu'une illusion, alors qu'est-ce que la réalité?"**

_Unknown_

They've been sitting around the table for a while, when Oliver stood up and reached out for Felicity's hand. "Ms Smoak, may I have this dance?" He asked and looked at her with those baby blue eyes that had floored so many women before.

Felicity met his gaze and smiled lightly, as those baby eyes were really hard to resist. She took his hand and slowly got up – again, she had 5" inch heels and she was still tipsy from the wine and champagne – and her leg had fallen asleep.

Also, she was truly scared to be seen on the dance floor with Oliver, only because she knew they would have all the eyes on them and everybody would start making up different stories in their heads because... Well, they were insanely rich and they could do that. Also, every single media personality were there and what better headline, first page cover story for the next day than hinting that Oliver Queen had a new love interest?

And then there was the fact that Felicity got incredibly clumsy and two-left-feet'ish when she got nervous and she had told Oliver this (Y_eah, until I trip because of these ridicolous high heels, rip my dress that was over the top over-priced or spill expensive wine on some society elite_.). Yet, he still didn't seem to care, he still had asked her to dance. Felicity closed her eyes and took a deep breath, mumbling something to herself.

"Felicity, are you okay?" Oliver asked, waking her from her daydreaming worries.

"Yes, yes, I'm good..." Felicity assured him. "Let's go sway, Mr Queen!"

Oliver looked at her, smirked while shaking his head. "Lead the way, Ms Smoak."

As Oliver and Felicity were finishing their first dance, the band that was playing was interrupted by the host.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I hope you're enjoying your evening. It's truly my honour to be able to host the musical part of this amazing gala at the legendary Fairmont Hotel." The audience clapped and then he continued, "It's an ever bigger honour for me to present the special musical guest for tonight. You'll be blown away by this young man, I assure you. He's come all the way from Ireland to perform for us tonight. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome... Marcus Feehily!"

"Did he say Ireland?" Felicity whispered to Oliver, who nodded. "Oh my God, I love Ireland..."

Oliver smiled at her, not surprised that Felicity, with her one-of-a-kind personality, was interested with one of the few countries with the strongest belief in folklore and mythical legends in the world.

A man dressed in black walked in on stage, waving at the audience. He shook the host's hand and took the microphone and started talking, with a thick Irish accent that made Felicity all excited. After a bit of presentation, a slow melody started playing and soon he started singing.

_I'm too tired to go to bed_

_I'm too wired for anything except_

_The crossfire in my head_

_It's been a long night_

_Cos I took all I can take_

_Til the walls shook and the windows break_

_I want to phone you but it's far too late_

_It's been a long night_

"Wow, this song is really good... And the singer is really handsome, like 1940s Hollywood-handsome..." Felicity said quietly. "Although, the melody is kind of... melodramatic and the lyric is really..."

"Felicity..." Oliver smiled as he interrupted her. "Is this the champagne talking or is it you being... _you_?"

Felicity giggled. "I'm sorry, I'm babbling again..." She looked around, happened to see Laurel standing in the distance and back at Oliver. "I see Laurel is here. Have you talked with her?"

Oliver looked at her, and his face expression told her she had overstepped a line, but he finally replied.

"I did, shortly, before I went to meet you. She's here with someone, who obviously didn't like me."

"Oh." Felicity looked at him, not sure if she could take the topic on Laurel further, or if she should let it go – for her own good. "I'm sorry you two couldn't work things out after you got back from the..." She looked up at Oliver and saw he was staring at her, his angry stare which creeped her out. She nodded quickly. "Sorry, I won't go there."

"It was over before I left, actually..." Oliver muttered and as he saw Felicity was about to ask more about it, he added, "Because of what happened with Tommy." He paused. "That's in the past now, we're still friends."

Felicity nodded and decided she wouldn't ask any more about Laurel, it was obviously not a line she would or should be crossing with Oliver anytime soon. Then again, why would she had the right to? She worked for him, she was his employee and him bringing her to the Fairmont Gala was simply, strictly work business.

_So talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Cos we fought an endless war_

_Til we forgot what we were fighting for_

_Now we can't stop_

_But we can withdraw_

_In the long night_

Felicity closed her eyes and without realizing it, she put her arms around Oliver's neck and she didn't either feel Oliver's hand going down her waist or him pulling her closer.

_So talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Talk me down_

Oliver looked at Felicity as they slowly were swaying around the dance floor. The song was really slow so they didn't have to move much. She still had her eyes closed and her arms around his neck. This was the closest they had been, if not counting the moment on the island when Felicity had stepped on the land mine and Oliver had saved her, swinging from a tree. He looked around the room and saw that quite a few people were looking at them, at _him_. Or maybe they were looking at Felicity, because she looked indeed beautiful tonight. Her dress was phenomenal, the most exclusive haute couture if he had understood it right.

_The light flashed and I thought I'd died_

_My life passed before my eyes_

_It went too fast for the love I feel_

_Inside_

This part of the song somehow spoke to Oliver and let him think about the time he had spent on the island all those years. There were moments when he'd dreamed about his life, both how it had been before and how it might look in the future. Laurel was always playing a mayor role in both sides of the dreams and Oliver accepted that, as she had been such a huge part of his life. But they tried being together but it hadn't worked out. Laurel had been mourning Tommy's death, Oliver had too, and he blaimed himself for not being able to save his best friend.

Another dream he had had while staying on the island the second time, after the tragedies coming from the undertaking, came to mind as well, Oliver realized... Sometimes he had dreamed about a figure that had been trying to tell him something, and the figure had always been surrounded by this friendly, calm light. Oliver had never figured out what it meant and when he returned to Starling City, the dream had disappeared.

_So talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Talk me down_

_Down, down, down_

_Lay your head near mine_

_Tell me that it's all fine_

_Love me while there's still time_

_It's been a long night_

When the song had finished, Felicity came back from her trance as she opened her eyes and she noticed that she was standing really close to Oliver, her hands around his neck and his hands on her lower back. She was startled by it and stepped back so quickly she almost fell back (again, 5" heels), but Oliver saved her.

"Felicity, careful...!" He said, grabbing her wrists firmly, pulling her up.

"Oh!..." Felicity looked at him. "Thank you. I told you I would be-"

"You were perfect." Oliver interrupted, he immediatly realized what he said, by the look on Felicity's face and he stepped back. "Are you okay, should we go back to our table?"

"No, no..." Felicity said. "I'd like some fresh air though. It's really hot in here."

"All right then." Oliver said. "There's a balcony upstairs, we could go there."

Felicity nodded, smiling. "Sounds like a plan."

Oliver smiled back, giving her his arm so she could support on him.

Back at the penthouse, the mysterious character was looking over the screens when there was a knock on the door and the same from before stepped in together with a woman.

"Is everything in order?" The mystery man asked.

"Only moments away now, sir." The woman replied. "We're waiting for the final reports and we'll be ready."

"Excellent. Send up the reports to me when they're done, so I can have a look at them. This will have to go perfectly as planned or there will be consequences..." The mystery man turned around and faced the two. _"Fatal consequences_. What about our special friend, what have you learned?"

"She's here together with someone, sir." The man replied. "And not just anyone. She's here with Oliver Queen."

"Oliver Queen, you say...?" The mysery character turned to the large screens again. "It seems like she's working her way up in the world." There were a few clicks heard and the cameras zoomed in on a face. "It seems like we'll be meeting sooner than I thought, _Zyta_..."


	5. Ep 4 - It is in our nature to travel in

**Chapter 4**

"**It is in our nature to travel into our past, hoping thereby to illuminate the darkness that bedevils the present."**

- _Farley Mowat_

Oliver and Felicity had finished the dance in the ball room and were now on their way up to the balcony on the second floor.

"Thank you for the dance, Oliver, it was lovely. I could've never seen you handling the dance floor."

Oliver looked at her. "My mother enrolled me and Tommy in dance classes when we were 14."

Felicity looked at him, surprise. "Really? That's an image I would've liked to see, teen-ager Oliver Queen on the dance floor..."

"Actually, we skipped most of the classes." Oliver stated. "I learned it from Lau-" He immediatly stopped, looking away from Felicity, who realized what he had been about to say. "Oh."

Felicity cursed in her mind, why was she still getting affected by Oliver's reaction to whenever Laurel was brought up. She acted like a jelous girlfriend, only she wasn't!

"Let's get you to that balcony." Oliver smiled, putting his hand on Felicity's waist as he lead her up the stairs.

The mystery man in the penthouse was watching the video screens even more closely and more thoroughly now. He had been surprised at first to see her at event as the one being held tonight at the Fairmont Hotel, then he had been stunned by how beautiful she had turned out to be, she was the spitting image of her mother. When thinking of the poor fate his ex-wife Elena had suffered, he felt bad. But then on the other hand, she had stopped him from seeing his child, a child that had learned to hate her own father. He had got that proven to her when all the letters he had sent, had come back un-opened.

Even bigger had the surprise been, when he had seen her together with Oliver Queen, the CEO of Queen Consolidated and son to the late Robert Queen and Moira Queen, who had been released from all charges at the trial for her co-operation with Malmcolm Merlin on the undertaking that had destoyed half the city. That he found odd, but he also knew that Moira Queen had connections every where

That Oliver Queen wasn't all he made out to be was clear - he had been watching the footage of him from tonight - he only needed to find out what it was and how she was involved in it. He had to take caution though, as he couldn't risk anyone finding out that he was in Starling City or what his relation to her was. His plans had been changed the second he found out she still lived in Starling and who she worked for. Back in Poland, they hadn't been satisfied but he had been firm with that the original plan had to be put on hold for a while, so that he could keep an eye out on her. She was his daughter after all.

There was a knock on the door and Ksenia, his partner, entered. Ksenia, who also had a troubled past, was the only one who knew the truth about his past life; that he was originally from Starling and that he had a daughter here, who he had been forced to walk out on. He had told Ksenia things he hadn't even told his wife back in Poland. But he had his reasons to keep it a secret from his family. If the wrong people found out, he could be putting the lives of his wife and children at risk. That his real name was Matt Forwood, not Misha Smolak and that his daughter was actually Felicity.

"Are you still watching that?" Ksenia sighed. "Misha, you shouldn't be torturing yourself..." She walked up to him, putting her hands on his shoulders. "You can't make yourself known to her either way. It's too dangerous, for all of us. Especially if she's together with Oliver Queen, especially if the rumours about him are true... We're finished if he-" She paused, looking at the screens for a bit and then she pulled out a folder. "I have the final reports here, the numbers look good. You should look over them, of course, but I would let the Warsaw office know that we have the green light."

"Right." He took the folder and opened it. "I will look at the reports tomorrow, let them know in Warsaw I will be in touch with them. You can tell the team we're done for tonight, you can return to your rooms." He looked at the screens again. "I will stay here a while longer."

"Do as you want, _kochanie_." Ksenia said. "I will leave my door open for you."

"Good night, Ksenia." Matt looked up at her. "I'll see you in the morning."

He heard Ksenia sigh, the door opening and closing. Turning back to the screens, he kept focusing on her face, watching her smile and looking genuinly happy. He also noticed the way she was looking at Oliver Queen, how they seemed to be in their very own little world while being on the dance floor, how protective Queen seemed to be about her and how often his hand touched her arm. In the footage he was watching now, they were walking out to the balcony, Oliver placing his hand on Felicity's back. He then realized something.

"Well, well... _Zyta_, it seems like I've found a way to get in touch with you."

Oliver and Felicity were now standing on the balcony. As cold as the night was, the sky was also filled with stars, making the night feel even more magical. Especially for Felicity. She kept looking up at the sky, when all of a sudden she shivered from the cold breeze.

Oliver reacted immediatly. "Are you cold?" He started taking his jacket off.

"No, I'm fine." Felicity said, even though she could feel the ice cold wind on her skin, making her shiver even more. She watched Oliver taking his jacket off. "Oliver, you don't have to do th-"

She didn't have time to say anymore, until his black jacket was covering her bare shoulders. Felicity looked at him, smiling. "Thank you."

"Better?" He asked.

"Yes." Felicity nodded. She turned to looking at the night sky again. "It's so beautiful out here tonight, I've never seen the sky so clear." She looked back at Oliver, her whole face smiling. "It's so beautiful."

Oliver had never seen Felicity like this, so calm and genuinely happy. Because of what he did and what Felicity helped him do, there hadn't been that many happy moments for Felicity, not as many as she deserved anyway, and seeing her like this now, made Oliver feel bad, as he didn't try enough to give Felicity those light moments, like tonight, as in return for what Felicity contributed to both her work on Queen Consolidated and how irreplaceable her contribution to helping the Arrow. She had been in danger several times and Oliver had been truly worried at least once that she might be seriously harmed, when she had been taken by the Count and he had been surprised how upset he had been and how relieved when she had been fine in the end, after he saved her. He had been forced to kill him but if it meant saving Felicity, he would do it over and over again.

He closed his eyes, being brought to that moment; the feeling of despair as the Count held the syringe filled with Vertigo only inches from her neck, the guilt when he shot the three arrows that killed the Count and knowing he had broken the promise not to kill anymore. He also remembered the relief when seeing that Felicity was safe, how she had been panicking at first but calmed down when hearing his voice.

Felicity noticed on the expression on Oliver's face, that he was far away in his thoughts. He looked troubled, so she knew that he wasn't exactly thinking about happy thoughts, like... kittens and Christmas.

"Oliver...?" She hesitated for a moment, but then put her hand on Oliver's. He flinched at first to her touch and Felicity could feel his whole body getting tense. "Oliver, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm..." Oliver opened his eyes, looking directly at Felicity. "I'm good." He smiled.

"You didn't seem good." Felicity said and Oliver could hear her being worried. He also noticed her hand was still on his. "What were you thinking about? Oliver, you can tell me."

"I was just... Thinking about how enchanting you look tonight and how happy you seem. This is probably happiest I've seen you and..." Oliver said and hesitated. "I can't help but to think that I'm the reason why you're not being like this more often... That since you met me and got in on... what I do, you've only experienced-"

"No, that's not true." Felicity interrupted him, her grip tightening around Oliver's hand. "Oliver, I've never been more satisfied with my life since I met you. I'm perfectly satisfied with helping you and Diggle, trust me." When she saw that Oliver didn't seem to believe her, she moved her hand from his hand to his face, even if it surprised her, she didn't feel uncomfortable doing it. "Oliver, trust me. I'm so thankful that I know you, you've made me learn things about myself I didn't know before, you've certainly made my life more exciting, _a lot _more..." She smiled and let out a small laugh.

Oliver nodded slowly. "I'm glad to know you too, Felicity." He then placed his hand on top of her hand on his face. Then there was only silent, the two of them exchaning glances.


	6. Ep 5 - Tell me and I'll forget Show me

**Chapter 5**

"**Tell me and I'll forget; Show me and I may remember; Involve me and I'll understand."**

_- Chinese Proverb_

Oliver and Felicity stood silent, looking at eachother, Felicity's hands still embracing Oliver's face and his hand on top of Felicity's.

Felicity didn't even think twice about removing her hands from his face. Somehow, it felt so familiar, so right... She kept looking at Oliver, looking for any sign of hesitation in his eyes – but there was none. She then took a deep breath, letting all her doubts go away at the exhale and moved closer to Oliver. Oliver now looked down on her.

"Felicity..." He whispered, his voice so low she almost didn't hear him.

Felicity didn't answer him, instead she moved her free hand around his neck and moved in closer so that their faces were inches from each other, their lips were almost close to touching. Oliver then moved his hands around Felicity's waist and pulled her closer and Felicity's other hand moved to embrasing his neck. Felicity's heart was pounding and she could feel Oliver's beating harder too.

"Felicity, we shouldn't-"

He didn't get to say anymore, as Felicity pressed her lips against his. At first he was hesitant, but he replied the kiss and with that the kiss got more intense, more passionate. Oliver moved his hands to Felicity's hands, their fingers entwined.

All of a sudden, there were sounds coming inside from the Fairmont and a second later, the door opened and immediately Oliver pulled away from Felicity. He pulled his hands away from her but she didn't let go, so they were still as entwined as before.

"Oliver!" They could hear Laurel's cheerful, intoxicated voice behind them.

Oliver closed his eyes, cursing in his mind, turning around to face Laurel.

"Laurel, hi." He then looked at Felicity, but she didn't face him. Instead she let go of his hands and stepped back. She took his jacket of his shoulders and gave it back to him.

"I'm not cold anymore." She said, her tone of voice trying to hide the hurt she was feeling, but Oliver could sense it, of course.

"Felicity-" He started. She then looked at him, without saying anything but her eyes spoke more than a thousand words and she walked away.

As Felicity walked away, Laurel looked after her, shooting her dirty looks. "Bye!" She said loudly after her, not trying to hide her very much rude tone of voice. She then turned to Oliver. "Ollie, are you avoiding me? You haven't talked to me all evening, you hardly said hello earlier..."

"You're here with a date, aren't you?" Oliver said calmly, trying to keep himself from leaving Laurel there and running after Felicity. "From what I saw from earlier tonight, he didn't enjoy us talking that much."

Laurel shrugged. "Eh, that's only Eddie, don't mind him." She moved in closer to Oliver. "I only took him, so I wouldn't be forced to go to this alone, plus..." She looked at Oliver. "You didn't exactly offer to take me-"

"I already had a date." Oliver said short, interrupting her, which left Laurel stunned. "Speaking of which, I should go looking for her." He then looked at Laurel and smiled quickly. "Take care of youself, Laurel, good night."

He then quickly left the balcony, going inside again, looking for Felicity.

Felicity was so embarrased. What had she been thinking, kissing Oliver like that? Had she lost her mind? She probably had.

"I'm such a fool!" She whispered, feeling the panic growing inside of her, the tears buring behind her eyelids. "Why did I do that?"

She had no idea why she'd kissed him, something had just come over her and she'd done it. She had been surprised at first, yes, but then Oliver had kissed her back and all of these feelings had risen to the surface for Felicity, feelings she hadn't really felt before, or maybe she'd known of them but she hadn't allowed herself to let them rise up, as all of them involved Oliver: Safety, passion, intensity, surprise, longing...

She now hid her face in her hands. Thinking about how Laurel had been very close to walking in on them kissing, how rude she had been against Felicity and how she almost had been throwing herself at Oliver, made Felicity even more embarrased of herself. Laurel was Oliver's first, true love. She had been the one thing that had kept him sane and alive on the island, why would Felicity in her right mind think, that she had a chance? She was just a plain IT-girl. There was no chance in hell that Oliver Queen would choose someone like her and if she believed that, she was crazy.

Felicity now stopped, to look around where she was. She was surprised to see she had walked into a smaller room, it looked like a library of some sort, as 3/4 of the room's walls were filled with book-shelfs. The last wall was instead covered with a large mirror. She walked around the room, looking at the book-shelfs, touching some of the books. Then she walked up to the mirror—covered wall and looked at her reflection. She took a deep breath and in that moment, the tears started to run down her cheeks.

Before she knew it, Felicity collapsed to the floor, letting the tears run freely, as she silently sobbed. She burried her face in her hands again. It was clear to her that this reaction of hers had to do with something else than just kissing Oliver. Because she couldn't be this wrecked about Oliver, could she?

Oliver was looking around for Felicity but he couldn't find her anywhere. He didn't let himself think about what had happened moments before Laurel had interrupted, he only wanted to find Felicity and see that she was allright. Although... the way she had looked at him when giving back his jacket, had told him she was anything but fine. She had in fact looked heartbroken. So Oliver needed to find her, to make everyting all right. Because if there was anything he couldn't bare, it was to lose someone important to him again. He had been very close to losing Felicity once already and he refused to do it again.

As Felicity still sat on the floor in the library-room, still crying, she could all of a sudden feel a pair of hands around her shoulders, pulling her up. She was turned around to face whoever it was pulling her up and who she saw, made her whole body turn to ice. But before she could scream, a white cloth was covering her mouth and everything turned black. The last thing on her mind was '_Oliver_'.


	7. Ep 6 - Don't urge me to leave you or to

**Chapter 6**

"**Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay"**

- _Ruth 1:16_

_For Felicity's 14th birthday, all she wanted was a pair of new ice skates. Her current ones were several years old and they were all worn out. It was getting harder and harder to skate with them on the ice, plus she was being teased for their dodgy looks by the other girls who used to skate at the same time. Felicity knew she could be so much better at the figure skating, than she already was. She had been enrolled in a few 'training competitions' and she had done very well._

_One day, about a week before Felicity's birthday, she brought a catalogue with ice skates she'd to show Elena. Felicity had marked out the ice skates that would suit her best and she had also taken the prize in consideration, since she didn't have that much extra in her savings and despite the fact that Elena was working two jobs – her regular work at the hospital as a nurse and the extra job at an hotel – they didn't have that much to live on monthly after all the expenses had been paid. Felicity had been looking for a job too, mainly during the weekends, but no one was hiring a 14-year old and Elena had told her to focus on her studies instead. She did get to baby-sit the neighbours' children from time to time, though, which gave her a little bit to put away._

_Matt sent a sum of money every other month, but that was mainly meant for Felicity's future, so it went to an account that was closed until Felicity's 18th birthday. It had taken a long while for Elena and Matt to get along and agree on issues surrounding Felicity, especially since he had moved to Poland, so Elena didn't want to risk that her ex-husband stopped sending the money at all._

_Elena was sitting at the dining table reading the newspaper, when Felicity walked in, the ice skate broshure being in her back-pack. Elena looked at her. "Hi sweetheart."_

"_Hi mam." Felicity said and smiled back. She put her back-pack beside a chair and sat down. "Anything interesting in the news today?"_

"_Nothing more interesting the usual." Elena smiled. "How was practice?"_

_Felicity didn't know how to answer that, as she hadn't been allowed to train on the ice since her coach, Ms Kinsella, had seen the very poor conditions of her ice skates. She had told Felicity that she couldn't skate with them anymore, that they could damage herself and destroy the ice for other users._

"_I didn't get the chance to skate, it was too crowded already." Felicity said and was about to bring up the subject of getting new skates for her birthday, when Elena all of a sudden said:_

"_How about we get you a new pair for your birthday?"_

_Felicity looked at her, stunned, not knowing what to reply. So instead she rushed up and wrapped her arms around Elena. "Thank you mam! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She then let go, smiling greatly at Elena. "I were actually going to ask you if I could get a pair for my birthday..." She started and picked out the catalogue. "I've marked out a few skates..." She opened it up and pointed them out for Elena, who showed interest by nodding. "It looks good, darling."_

_Felicity looked at her, smiling. "There is a pair I'd _really_ want..." She looked in the catalogue, finding the page with her "dream skates": _The Jackson Fit_. It was the ultimate skates to have, the IT-to-have-brand (the prize was thereafter) and she knew that the other girls would be so jelous at her, especially those who had made fun of her old skates. "Ms Kinsella could probably help with ordering them and getting the perfect fit. They are quite expensive though, so I can pay them myself, I have money saved up and I can ask dad for the rest-" _

"_No, we won't ask anything off your father besides the sum he sends you for your college fund. I got the impression that his new wife wasn't too keen on him sending you money." Elena interrupted and shrugged. "I haven't even met the woman but I dislike her already. She might be his new wife and they might have their own children but he still has to be a father to _you_. If she somehow stops him from sending money, I will bring in the lawyers."_

_Felicity always felt uncomfortable when Elena talked about Matt, his new life in Poland, his new family and the fact that he might not support Felicity as well as he should. There was always hidden resentment in the tone of Elena's voice._

"_I do think she knows that, mom. Besides, it's not like dad has abandonded us completely. He's still coming to visit in the Summer, he sends letters and cards... He hasn't forgotten about us." She smiled and hugged Elena one more time. "Thank you so much for this mom, it will be the best birthday ever!"_

_As Felicity looked through the catalogue with the ice skates, a smile appeared on her face and she started to imagine how bright her future would be, her mom's too. She would get the ice skates for her birthday and she would be able to start skating for real, getting better and better._

_Elena smiled and looked at her daughter, who now was looking through the catalogue with such excitement. Elena loved that about her daughter, she was so full of life and joy, she had the best of faith in everyone... Even in her father, who had walked out on her and now had a new family in Poland._

_There were a lot of issues that Elena had kept from her daughter, things that she never could find out, things about the real reason to why Matt had left, why he didn't write them more often, why Elena hardly spoke about Matt... Elena knew it would break that beautiful girl if the many secrets that were being kept from her ever came out. Elena had done so much in her efforts to protect Felicity and she would continue to do so until the day she died._

Oliver was still searching for Felicity and he was getting worried. He had looked every where and she couldn't be found. He was right now in the ballroom, looking around if he could spot Felicity.

"Felicity, where _are _you?" He thought to himself, started to feel the panic and anger rising inside of him. All of a sudden, he felt a hand on his shoulder and Oliver turned around, only to face Diggle.

"Digg! What are you doing here?" Diggle didn't say anything but his face expression told Oliver everything he needed to know - and it didn't look good. "What's happened, is it...?"

"Not here." Diggle said with a low voice. "Let's go."

Oliver nodded. They then walked outside, leaving the Fairmont Hotel and getting into Diggle's car; the one he used when driving the Queen family around.

"What's going on, Digg?" Oliver asked again. "I can't find Felicity, I've been looking everywhere for her... I should keep looking for her-"

"Something came up on the radar at Verdant." Diggle said and pulled out a tablet. He then gave the tablet to Oliver, showing a profile of a woman. "This is Beatrycze Salomea. She workes at some kind of institution in Warsaw, I couldn't get out a name. She came here with a man, Misha Smolak. He works at the same institution. They came to Starling from Poland a few days ago. Now..."

"I don't understand, what does this has to do with Felicity?" Oliver asked.

Diggle then looked at him, gave him the tablet and Oliver looked at it. It showed another profile, of Misha Smolak. Oliver read it for a moment and then he looked up at Diggle in shock.

"Oh my God. He's... Where are they now?"

"That's the thing, Oliver. There are no traces after them since they landed in Starling, they're off the radar." Diggle said. "Immediatly when I found out who this Misha-guy was, I did everything I could to find them, but it's impossible."

Oliver felt a punch in his heart. Right then and there, he knew that Felicity was in danger and time might be running out for her. They had to find her – quickly.

Felicity's head was pounding and her eyes hurt when she slowly opened them. There was nothing surrounding her but darkness and she had no idea where she was. She tried to move but noticed right away, to her great despair, that both her hands and feet were tied with something sharp. The little she could move, resulted in a sound, which made her think she was chained. She pulled with her feet and she immediatly was restrained by a strong force, making her gasp with pain.

It was damp and cold in the small place where she was. She could feel the tears burning in her eyes, her whole body aching. She slowly started to remember what had happened before she blacked out: her and Oliver on the balcony, she kissing him, Laurel interrupting them and being a total bitch, Felicity running out on Oliver... Finding herself in the library/mirror-room and... The last image she couldn't let herself believe, it was impossible. She remembered the face so clearly, but it couldn't be – could it? The face she had seen... It had been the face of Matt, her father. But it couldn't be, right? What would he be doing back?

Oliver and Diggle were still sitting in the car, trying to process what they've learned just now.

"How can this be?" Diggle asked. "Did you know? I know you did your home work on Felicity before getting involved with her but... Did you know about _this_?"

Oliver shook his head. "I had no idea. I didn't find anything on Felicity's family... She has never mentioned her family either, atleast not to me." The panic started to re-appear again. "We have to find her, as soon as possible."

"They must have security on the hotel, especially for an event like this. I'll go talk with them, see if anything turns up in the security cameras... You go back to Verdant."

"I can't just sit around and wait, Dig..." Oliver said, annoyed. "I have to-"

"Hey. I know you want to get her back safe, so do I." Diggle said, calming him down. "I will do the best I can to see if I find anything, I'll let you know."

Oliver nodded. _I can't lose you Felicity, I can't lose you, please be safe just be safe._ All of a sudden there was a beep in Oliver's phone. Oliver quickly pulled it out, seeing he'd got a message from a hidden number. It simply read:

**Cameron Lake, Glades Mid Islands. Tomorrow 9pm. Come alone or she is dead. We're watching you.**


	8. Ep 7 - Waiting is painful Forgetting is

**Chapter 7**

"**Waiting is painful. Forgetting is painful. But not knowing which to do is the worse kind of suffering."**

_- Paulo Coelho  
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Oliver and Diggle were still doing their best to find Felicity and her taker. Since the gala on the Fairmont still hadn't ended, it was just a bit over midnight, Oliver had still had his part to play, it would look too suspicious if he all of a sudden rushed home, so Diggle was talking with the security and had been granted permission to look through the footage from the survaillance cameras.

"Mr Queen, where has your beautiful date disappeared to?" Oliver got asked often.

"Ms Smoak didn't feel well, so I had my driver take her home." Oliver answered with a smile, trying to keep his calm but it was insanely difficult to do when he knew that Felicity was out there somewhere, alone, in danger... If anything of the things Diggle had found out about Misha Smolak was anywhere near true, Felicity was in a greater danger than Oliver had at first realized.

The text he had recieved earlier was impossible to trace. The one who had sent it had gone through a lot of trouble to keep the identity a secret. The only one who might have a shot at decrypting it, was Felicity and she was... _missing_.

Oliver shrugged. He couldn't think like that, they would find Felicity, he would bring her to safety. But he couldn't help blaming himself for what had happened to her. He should've gone after Felicity the second she had ran out, when Laurel had walked out on the balcony... If he had done that, Felicity might still be here – with him. He then realized something else: _You shouldn't have let you kiss her._ But it had felt _right_ at the time being...

Safety, passion, intensity, surprise, longing – these were all factors, some stronger than others, he felt when being around Felicity. She challanged him in so many ways and she could drive him crazy but... She was also the one who kept him sane, his beacon of light to guide him through the darkness whenever he needed it.

She was the one who had told him he had to find another way to bring in the bad guys of Starling, when he had come back from the island a second time and had insisted he couldn't put on the green hood again if it meant he had to kill, because it would dishonour Tommy's memory. _You have to find another way_, she had told him – and he had. Until the night when the Count had taken her and the only way to save Felicity, was for Oliver to fire those three arrows.

Admitting to himself that Felicity played a bigger role in his life than he at first had thought, was a big step for Oliver. He hadn't after all let himself care for anyone, except Laurel but that was simply because of their past and look how well that had worked out... No, Laurel was a closed chapter, she was his past. Did this mean Felicity was Oliver's future? Oliver didn't know and that wasn't important at the moment. The most important thing, the one thing he had to focus all his energy on now, was to bring Felicity back home safe.

"Oliver." He heard Diggle say behind him, and he turned around.

"Did you find anything?" The frown expression on Diggle's face told Oliver the answer. "What?"

"The security manager told me that they'd deactivated the security cameras for the event tonight. It was a request from the manager, he didn't want to make the guests feel uncomfortable." Diggle told him and sighed. "So there is no chance in hell we can get any clues who took Felicity..."

Oliver felt the anger boiling inside of him and he had to clunch his fists to prevent himself from punching someone or something. "We'll have to find another way then. We have no idea who we're dealing with... If I go to Cameron Lake without any idea of who I will be facing... I'm not willing to risk Felicity for that."

"I get you." Diggle said. "I have a feelings this Misha Smolak has something to do with it, plus, why contact you of all people? He has to know Felicity works for you, so that might mean he has been keeping a watch on her during all these years. Maybe he's expecting to get ransom money or something." He paused. "Could it be that he knows about your, hmm, other self?"

"I have no idea." Oliver said. "The most important thing is that we find Felicity and bring her home safe." He looked at the time. "The gala is soon over, I better go mingle one last lap. Wait for me in the car, I will be out in 20."

Diggle nodded and walked out. Oliver took a deep breath and went to talk with some random people. The whole time he was talking about QC, his co-leadership with Isabel and why these people should invest in the company, he was thinking about Felicity, worrying like sick about her well-being.

There was a loud bang and Felicity's eyes shot wide open. Her head was still pounding and it was now much colder where she was, than it had been before. It was a bit lighter now than before, which meant that it was morning, maybe? She tried to move but her whole body was aching and when trying to move her hands, she noticed they were put up over her head, in chains.

"What the... When did this happen?" She mumbled, closing her eyes again, trying to numb out the pounding in her head. She looked down and noticed that the skirt on her dress was badly torn, all the under layers were ripped to pieces, most of the embroided diamonds were gone and the whole dress was wet and dirty. The Manolo Blahnik 5" heels she was no longer wearing, they were tossed in the corner and one of the heels were broken.

"So much for haute couture..." Felicity mumbled and tried to move her hands' position but they were restrained by the chains. "_Ouch_!"

All of a sudden the door swung open and Felicity flinched with surprise, followed by pain as she moved and the chains around her hands and feet held her back. She turned to face who had opened the door.

"_Cześć, Felicyta_." A woman's voice said. "I see you're awake. You've been out for hours."

"Who are you?" Felicity mumbled. "Why am I here? Who brought me here?"

"Enough with the Q&A." The woman said. "Just know that if you behave like the good girl Ive heard you are, you will live. I might also tell you who I am and what the point of keeping you here is."

Felicity might not know who the woman was, but she knew for a fact that Matt was invovled. "What does Matt Forwood has to do with this?" When she said this, she could see the woman frown. "So he _is_ involved? You do know that he is my father, that he abandoned me and my mother when I was 7. He hasn't been back to Starling since I was 13 and I haven't heard a word from him since I were 15. He didn't even call me when my mother died. Now all of a sudden he's back and he decides to kidnap me... At the most luxurious event of the year, I might add. Anyone could put the pieces together and figure that out."

"Shut up!" The woman angrily said. She then gave Felicity the evil eye, mumbled something in what Felicity guessed was Polish and shut the door shut again.

Felicity smiled to herself, she had pushed the woman's buttons. But she was also worried, what did all of this mean? What did her father want with her, she had nothing to give him and she had no intensions at all of getting to know him again. Then again...

What if Matt being back didn't had anything to do with him wanting to get to know Felicity, what if it had to do with something else? What if she was only a part of the puzzle to get what he really wanted? Then it came to her, like a flash of lightninng... Matt was using her as a bait to get to what or _who_ – he wanted.

**Oliver.**


	9. Ep 8 - When a man is in despair, it mean

**Chapter 8**

"**When a man is in despair, it means that he still believes in something." **

-_ Dmitri Shostakovich_

Felicity felt the panic rise inside of her. Matt was back because he wanted something from Oliver and somehow Matt had found out that Felicity was working for Oliver. That was the reason why he had taken her, Matt was probably hoping that Oliver would come to save her and then...

She closed her eyes, trying to shake the worrying feeling. She didn't know who her father was anymore - _she didn't even see him as her father anymore_. From the short moment Felicity had seen him at the moment when she had been taken from the Fairmont, it had been a stranger standing in front of her, his eyes lifeless. The man she remembered from her childhood as the loving and caring man she had once upon a time called dad, was gone. What she didn't understand though, what was Matt could possibly want with Oliver? It didn't make sense.

Oliver was probably doing all he could, with help from Diggle, trying to find out where she was. That Felicity was sure of. Where ever she was... She didn't have a clue about her whereabouts, since she seemed to be in some kind of bunker or cell and it didn't have any windows. It was still damp and quite cold, even if it was lighter now then it had been when she first waked up.

"You will find me Oliver, I know you will..." She thought to herself. "I only hope you won't get hurt in the process."

All of a sudden, Felicity's head started pounding again, shots of pain going through her whole body and she started to feel cold. Her vision got blurry and her whole body started to go limp and numb. It took a moment but soon she faded into darkness again.

As with everything, Matt had survaillance on the small cell where he had placed Felicity. She had been in and out of consciousness after the drug he had given her at the abduction site. He had also let an amount of an anestethic drug be inserted every 30 minutes into the cell via the bricks the cell were built off. He had gone through all of this to make sure Felicity wouldn't remember she'd seen him, but she had been perfectly awake when Ksenia had gone to check on her and it had been made clear then that she knew that her father – Matt – was the one who'd kidnapped her.

Ksenia was still furious. "I can't believe how that little _pizda_ talked to me! She was perfectly aware that it was you who took her, Misha, so now what?!"

"Language, my dear... Please." Matt tried to calm her down. "Calm down, Ksenia, will you?" He said. "Thanks to the amounts of _Talwin_ that is being inserted into the cell every 30 minutes, Felicity will slowly be sedated. I'll increase the dose in a few hours so that when she's completly under the anaesthetic, and we can move her to Cameron Lake." Matt gave Ksenia an ensuring look. "It's a strong drug, Ksenia, you don't wake up just like that."

"What if the drug isn't strong _enough_? What if she wakes up while being moved and she figures everything out..." Ksenia said but was interrupted by Matt:

"She won't." He assured. "I know what I'm doing, Ksenia, this is my area of expertice after all." He paused. "And you know what to do if-"

"She is a very smart woman, Misha! What if she gets a message to Queen about where we are!" Ksenia shouted, getting more and more anxious. "We're risking a lot with this operation of yours. If we fail, we're all dead!"

"Ksenia!" Matt growled. "Stop acting like this! If I say we'll be successful, we will be _successful_." He looked at Ksenia, bringing her closer in an emrace, touching her face. "_Moje kochanie_... _Wszystko będzie dobrze_. _Zaufaj mi_." Ksenia nodded and looked at him for a moment, before pressing her lips against his and wrapping her arms around his neck.

Matt pushed her against the wall, lifted her up so that she was only balancing on her toes. Ksenia pushed her hips against Matt's, moaning against his neck. Matt took a deep breath and pulled back, releasing his grip from Ksenia. "Ksenia... We can't..." He sighed. "I have to think about... Rebekah and the kids..."

Ksenia looked at him. "Really? So _now_ you take your family in consideration?" She let go of him. "This didn't seem to be a problem _five years ago_ in Kybartai." She looked away as Matt touched her face and she shook his hand off. "Your wife, your _pregnant_ wife, was at home alone with four small children but you still thought it was more important to be in Kybartai. _With me_. When we were in Paris, you didn't care that Amelia was ill in hospital, that Rebekah was worried sick..."

"That's enough." Matt said and turned his back to her, adjusting his tie and jacket.

"No! I'm not done!" Ksenia said with a loud tone of voice. "You say you have to think about your family, when you've never done so in the past! The truth is, your children don't even know you! Mateusz, Amelia, Julia, Dawid, Jakub... These are five children who don't know who their father is. You speak like you're a family man, acting like you care when the simple truth is... _you don't_."

"I said, that's enough!" Matt growled. "You have no right to speak about my family, Ksenia. You don't know them. So _enough_." He looked at his watch. "Go check on Felicity, the latest dose of _Talwin_ should've been inserted by now. Take her vitals as well, I don't want her to get an overdose."

Ksenia nodded, taking deep breaths and straighting out the wrinkles in her skirt and blouse. "Right away." She then turn around and walked away, her high heels clinking against the floor.

Matt sighed and took his phone to dial. "It's me. We'll be leaving for Cameron Lake at 6pm. Be ready." He listened back and then hung up the phone. He turned his attention to the surveillance over the cell.

Oliver hadn't slept very well – he had been worrying about Felicity - but he still went to the QC office. Diggle kept sending him updates about Felicity's whereabouts but his searches didn't get them far. It looked no better that Oliver had to get to Glades Mid Islands and see what would happen from there.

Isabel called at midday to ask about how many investors he got at the event at Fairmont and when Oliver told her he hadn't got direct confirmation from anyone but some had shown interest and Oliver had then invited them to a meeting once Isabel had returned from Shanghai.

"I'm impressed, Mr Queen." Isabel had said. "You've actually showed interest, you've come a long way since the first time I met you."

"It's my duty to keep this company going, I owe it to my family." Oliver had told Isabel and they then had continued their conversation a little while longer: Isabel's visit at the QC headquarters in Shanghai had been successful, they had offered to help out in any way possible and now Isabel would continue to the office in Sydney and then continue to Europe, where QC had offices in Moscow, Copenhagen, Berlin, Paris and Dublin with the head quarters being in Helsinki. Isabel would visit the head quarters and the offices in Copenhagen, Berlin and Dublin. Isabel had then offered Oliver to come join her, as it would be better for the two of them to be there and show "an united front".

"That sounds good, Isabel but things at the office are very busy and stressful at the moment..." Oliver had told a white lie but he couldn't very well tell Isabel he had to decline her offer so that he could find Felicity who'd been kidnapped.

Isabel already thought that he had employed Felicity as his assistant because they had a relationship, so she wasn't Felicity's biggest fan. And the feelings were mutual, from the mood Felicity was in most of the time after being forced to interract with Isabel.

"Well, next time then." Isabel had said and they had shortly after that ended their discussion.

All of a sudden, Oliver's sister Thea came rushing through the doors to Oliver's office. "Oliver!"

Oliver looked up, shocked to see his sister at QC as she had more or less taken distance from the whole company. "Thea? What are you doing here?" He asked.

"What exactly happened at Fairmont last night?" Thea asked. She paused, picking something out of her bag. "I bought every magazine I could find, I guessed you hadn't seen it, otherwise you wouldn't be so calm..." She came over to his desk and put the stack of magazines down. "Take a look at these. Mom already saw them and... She's not happy, Ollie. I had to convince her that-"

"Thea, _what are you talking about_?" Oliver interrupted her.

Thea glanced at him. "You should really keep up with the... gossip, Ollie." She gave him a magazine. "Page... Well, the cover is a good start."

Oliver looked at her, shaking his head in sigh and then turning his attention to the magazine Thea had handed him, _The Starling Paley_, the ultimate magazine to turn to if you wanted to read the most outrageous gossip stories about the celebrities in Starling. Oliver couldn't even count the number of times he had been features in the magazine but he did know that the majority of the stories about him were false and the very few ones that maybe had some accuracy, were so twisted around that there was not much to call truth in them.

"_The Paley_, Thea? **Really**?" Oliver said and looked at her, giving her a look. "You should know that it's not the first magazine I would choose..." He looked down on the magazine again and froze. There was a photo collage on the cover, of him and Felicity – including a photo of them kissing on the balcony (it was quite blurry so for an untrained eye it might be hard to see but Oliver knew) – with the headline "**Billionare Beau Queen's new Love Interest! **_We have the scoop!_"

Ksenia knew she had no right to bring up Misha's family and his children especially, they had nothing to do with this. But when he had declined their _moment_ and tried to use his family as an excuse, she had exploded and... everything, espeically Ksenia's personal feelings, had gone out of hand.

Ksenia had been basically living by Misha's side for the past six years, so she barely remembered her life before that. This was mainly thanks to that she had got involved with Misha so quickly and everything had gone so fast. Even if Ksenia knew it was not in her better judgement to get involved, she was partly to blame as well; she had fallen for Misha the second she had met him and she had flirted with him on a daily basis. Sometimes she had come to her senses about it all, she knew that he was happily married and had children, but it hadn't mattered how much she tried to forget about Misha... Because by that time, Misha himself had got her eyes on her and it became harder and harder for Ksenia to resists his good looks and charm. And so the D-day came when Misha brought Ksenia on a mission to Kybartai...

Once they had been alone in that small cottage in Kybartai (Lithuania) where they stayed, she couldn't fight it, seeing the desire burn in Misha's eyes, telling her he wanted her as badly as she wanted him. It had been one of the most passionate nights of her life and after that day, Ksenia had been _his_.

Despite what her common sense told her, Ksenia had quickly fallen head over heels in love with Misha. Even with the knowledge that she would never be anything more than a mistress to Misha, he would stay faithful to his family. Ksenia didn't care, she was happy being _the other woman _and she made sure Misha didn't forget their romantic encounters. Nevertheless had she been forced to pay for her decision to firstly become Misha's mistress and second working for him and the company. She had been forced to give up so much, including leaving her past life behind. But Ksenia loved Misha, despite the fact that he didn't treat her that great sometimes, he didn't take her feelings in consideration, not to mention all the consequences that had appeared from her interraction with Misha... Consequences she would have to live with for the rest of her life...

Ksenia sighed, walking into the unit where the cells were. Before opening the door to the cell where Felicity was kept, she took up her phone and looked at a few photos. Tears appeared in her eyes as she saw the smiling faces of her daughters: Anamarija and Klara, four and two years old. They were living with a family in Slovenia, who believed Ksenia was the girls' aunt and therefor she got occasional updates. These two little girls were the greatest consequence of all that Ksenia had to pay. They were the result of her involvment with Misha, Anamarija and Klara were her and Misha's daughters. Misha didn't know, Ksenia had been very good with hiding it and she would make sure he would never find out.

She opened the door to the cell where Felicity was. Felicity seemed to be out of it still, so Ksenia stepped in and started taking Felicity's vitals. Her heart rate and pulse seemed a bit low, so Ksenia wrote them down and took notes to tell Misha to hold the next dose of _Talwin_.

Oliver couldn't belive that he and Felicity were all over the Starling media. It was not only the magazines, it was all over the TV News and Thea was not too happy with the situation either. "I know you were there as a representive for the company and that Felicity was with you but... Ollie..." Thea started.

"I'm not having this discussion with you Thea." Oliver firmly said. "I don't have time either, I'm busy."

"I'm not to keen to have it either, Ollie, but rather me than mam. _Trust me_." Thea said. "Listen... I don't have any problems with you and Felicity... If you were..."

"_Thea_!" Oliver said and got up from his desk. "I'm not having this discussion. You have to go, I'm busy." At the same time, Diggle walked into the office. "Diggle, hi. I'll be with you in a moment." Oliver turned to Thea again. "I'm sorry, Thea, but you have to go. I'm heading out for a meeting."

Thea nodded, picked the magazines from the desk and put them back in the bag. "I'll see you at home. Bye Ollie." When she passed Diggle, she smiled and Diggle greeted her with "Ms Queen."

Oliver sat down again at his desk and sighed. "I take it you've seen the news. It's a mess. Not only is Felicity missing... No, I won't even go there."

"Aren't you used to the tabloid writing crap about you? Why are you so...?" He got silent when he saw the look on Oliver's face. "Ah, you're worried about what Felicity will think."

"Yeah... If we ever get her back..." Oliver sighed.

"Don't think like that man, we'll get her back. Anyways, we better get going if you want to make your... _meeting_ tonight."

"Yeah. Yeah, let's go."


	10. Ep 9 - Nothing so much enhances a good a

**Chapter 9**

"**Nothing so much enhances a good as to make sacrifices for it."**

_- George Santayana_

Oliver and Diggle were on their way to Cameron Lake in the Glades Mid Islands. Oliver was sitting quiet in the passanger seat. Diggle had asked if he wanted to drive but Oliver's head was swirling on overload with thoughts and scenarios over how the night could play out. He hadn't been able to focus on the road – and the road up to the Glades Mid Islands demanded 100% focus on the road -, so he had shaken his head and handed the keys to Diggle.

However, most of the time he thought about Felicity and her well-being. His worst fear was that she would be hurt in some way, that he wouldn't be able to bring her home. Who knew what Misha... or Matt, whatever he called himself, had done to her? If anything, _anything _at all happened to Felicity, Oliver would never be able to forgive himself. He had to save her, that was how the night would turn out; he would save Felicity from that psycho Smolak – whatever it took.

"Oliver, are you hearing me?" Oliver was awaken from his thought and could hear Diggle talking to him in the far distance. He jumped and looked at Diggle. "What?"

"We'll soon be at the orbit of Cameron Lake, this is as far as I will go. We don't want to risk getting any unwelcome surprises, right? They did ask you to come alone after all." Oliver nodded. "I connected my phone and the car's speakers to Wi-Fi. I will still be able to hear everything that happens, I can correspond with you and you can correspond with me. I won't be able to reply, though. However, I don't want to interfer unless I _really_ have to." Diggle continued and looked intensly on Oliver. "Do you understand, Oliver?"

Oliver nodded again. "Yes, crystal." The two of them stepped out of the car. "The important thing about tonight is that we get Felicity back, isn't it?" Oliver continued.

"Of course. The most important thing is that we get Felicity back safe and sound." Diggle said. "Don't worry, man. You'll get her home."

Oliver looked at him and for the first time since Diggle had learned to know Oliver Queen, he saw hesitation, doubt... and his eyes showed a different kind of hurt. That told Diggle what he already had suspected for a while already: Oliver's feelings towards Felicity were stronger than Oliver led on and that was the reason why he now was doubting himself. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to get Felicity out of there safe and sound. Diggle was glad that Oliver had someone who could guide him through the darkness that often seemed to surround him, bury him.

"Oliver." Diggle again said. "Felicity will be fine, you will get her home and Smolak will pay the price for his actions. Don't doubt yourself."

"I know." Oliver said. "I just... I don't know how to..." He shook his head and looked at the watch on his wrist, it showed 8.40pm. "I need to get going. You will wait here?"

Diggle nodded. "Yes. If anything dangerous goes down, I will be there as soon as I can." He picked up his tablet. "I can keep track of you on this, there's a GPS tracker in the car."

"Good, thanks Digg." Oliver took a deep breath. "See you later." Oliver stepped into the car and drove off.

Ksenia and Matt were waiting for Oliver to arrive at Cameron Lake.

"What happens when he gets here?" Ksenia asked. "You haven't told me the plan."

Matt looked at her. "That's because you won't be here. Your job is to make sure Felicity is allright and..."

"She's still under the anaesthetic, what harm can she do?"

"Ksenia, please stop arguing with me and do as you're told... And... Mr Queen will probably want to see evidence that Felicity is unharmed, make sure that is set up by the time he arrives. And if he decides to make the wrong move, you know what to do."

Ksenia nodded, trying to hide her anger. "So you will be facing the Starling vigulante all by yourself? That's a _very _smart move." She knew exactly what to do if Oliver made one wrong move. Appearently that was her job nowadays, babysit and run arrends for Misha.

"He won't be alone, Ksenia." There were steps approaching behind them so Ksenia turned around, only to be standing face to face with Beatrycze Salomea.

Beatrycze was the CEO of the company Misha and Ksenia worked for in Warsaw. Ksenia didn't know for sure, but she was quite certain that Beatrycze and Misha were sleeping together – or atleast they had in the past. But because Beatrycze was very intimidating and terrifying – Ksenia had kept her dislike to herself. From what Ksenia had heard, Beatrycze had a lot to do with Misha being so successful as he was with his work and why he had been promoted so quickly from his original job as a medical research assistant – to Beatrycze's husband – to his current occupation.

"Beatrycze, you're here." Matt smiled, walking up to her, shaking her hand. "Welcome to Cameron Lake."

"Thank you, Misha." Beatrycze said. "I must admit, I thought the driver had taken me to the wrong adress at first but now I see why you chose this place for our encounter with Mr Queen. It's quite stunning, this landscape." She looked at Ksenia. "Ksenia, you can go now."

"I'm sure Misha still needs me around." Ksenia tried to argue but Matt only shot her a look and she knew that was her queue to leave. -"As you wish." She turned around and walked away.

Beatrycze looked att Matt. "Misha, I know you find Ksenia to be of value of your and the company but she is starting to get on my nerves. Do something about it – or I will."

Matt flinched for a second, hoping Beatrycze didn't notice. What was her agenda, threatening Ksenia? "That won't be necessary, I assure you." He looked at the watch on his wrist, it showed 8.45pm. "Mr Queen should be joining us any minute now."

"I can't understand your angle with all of this, Misha, abducting the girl and demanding Mr Queen's presence..." Beatrycze said. "Why are you so sure Mr Queen of all people will show up?"

"Trust me, Beatrycze. He will show up. The girl is more important to him than you might think." Matt said.

Ksenia had reached the spot where Felicity was kept. It was a 10 minutes walk from the location where Mattt and Beatrycze would meet Oliver, Matt had been very clear on that he didn't want Felicity close enough so that Oliver could reach her in some way before Matt could get his message through.

Ksenia stepped through the door and put-under-anaesthetic Felicity was laying in front of her on a stretcher, an IV-drip attached to her wrist. Before transporting her to Cameron Lake, Ksenia had inserted one more dose of Talwin, to keep her from waking up. The IV-drip was a precaution to prevent worse side-affects from the many Talwin doses Felicity had got and it was also set to get her to wake up sooner than normal. Ksenia had ordered Matt's employers to get Felicity out of the dress she had been wearing when being taken, now she had a simple outfit with jeans and a cotton shirt.

"Who would've thought I would be ordered to baby-sit this spoiled brat..." Ksenia mumbled as she checked Felicity's vitals and sat down with her laptop. Once in a while she turned to watch Felicity.

Oliver had now arrived at the rendez-vous point with Mr Smolak. He parked his car, and told Diggle where he was, how the location looked, surroundings and such. In that way, it would be easier for Diggle to get there faster – if anything of the worse sort was to happen.

Oliver took a deep breath, closing his eyes. He visualized how the night would go: He would meet with Smolak, find out what he wanted and why he had taken Felicity, he would demand seeing evidence that Felicity was allright and un-harmed... And then he would make Smolak pay, make him suffer... Then Oliver could finally bring Felicity home _with him_... and he would never let her out of his sight ever again.

Matt saw a car pulling up. He looked at Beatrycze and smiled lightly. "It looks as Mr Queen made it just in time."

"So it seems." Beatrycze replied. "I know what your agenda is with all of this, Misha, but I ask you to be patient and do not rush things. If we say something that upsets him, the whole operation would have been planned in vain." She looked at him intensly, so intensly that someone else would have been frightened but not Matt, as he understood Beatrycze.

Matt nodded. "Yes, I understand." He made way for Beatrycze, so that they could go meet Oliver.

Oliver then took another breath and stepped out of the car, staring to walk towards the two characters walking towards him.


	11. Ep 10 - Faithless is he that says farewe

**Chapter 10**

"**Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens." **

- _J.R.R. Tolkien_

The short walk Oliver made to meet Matt Forwood and Beatrycze Salomea took only a few seconds, but it felt like forever. This wasn't the first time Oliver had faced the bad guys, he had been around plenty... Malcom Merlyn, The Triad, The Count...

But this time it was different. These people were putting someone very important to Oliver in danger and what made the whole situation even more dangerous, was that Oliver had no idea why they had targeted him with taking Felicity. He had never heard of Matt Forwood/Misha Smolak or Beatrycze Salomea until today. _What was their agenda?_

Ksenia was working on her laptop when she heard small, silent sounds coming from Felicity. Ksenia turned to watch and could now see Felicity's hand moving slowly.

"Ah, waking up are we?" Ksenia mumbled.

She stood up and went to check on Felicity and her vitals. Everything seemed to be in order, so appearently the IV drip had done its part. Ksenia would more than well have liked that Felicity had stayed under a while longer, atleast until Misha was done with whatever he wanted from Oliver Queen. As soon as that was finished, Ksenia could get rid off the blonde, obnoxious brat and hopefully she and Misha could go back home to Poland. However, looking at how Misha was enjoying being back in Starling and the fact that he had found his lost daughter – even if he might not be able to get a real relationship and attend Sunday dinners with her – the chance was annoyingly great that Ksenia would have to stay in Starling for a long time.

She took one more look on Felicity, adjusted the IV drip and went back to her laptop.

As Oliver approached them, Matt and Beatrycze looked at eachother. Matt stretched his back and let Beatrycze go a step head, since she was doing the talking. Why exactly Beatrycze had taken over, Matt didn't know for sure, it had been his idea to start the investigation in Warsaw and then take the team to Starling.

Sure, the plans had changed when he had seen Felicity together with Oliver Queen at the Fairmont Hotel but that had been his own plan, and somehow Beatrycze had joined him on that path. On the other hand, maybe she simply took the lead in this situation, considering the fact that Matt had kidnapped his own daughter (who nobody knew about except him and Ksenia) to get Oliver Queen. And then there was the fact that you didn't say _no_ to Beatrycze Salome. She also had given Matt hints that she needed to encounter Oliver for the original plan. He didn't know much more, Beatrycze had been very secrative.

Oliver was now standing in front of them. His face expression was stone cold, not showing one emotion.

"Mr Queen." Beatrycze said, reaching out her hand. Oliver looked at her firmly, his face showing no emotions whatsoever and he took her hand, shaking it.

"I appreciate you taking time to meet us up here." Beatrycze continued. "I assume you know my collegue, Mr Smolak."

Oliver looked at Matt, nodded and then back at Beatrycze. "What do you want?"

"I simply want to talk, Mr Queen," Beatrycze said, "Discuss the possibilities of us and our companies working together in the future."

"Before I agree to anything, I need to see the girl you and your partner have taken." Oliver said. He then gave Matt a long, hard look and then continued, "Felicity Smoak."

"As you wish." Beatrycze said and nodded at Matt. -"Misha, could you sort that out?"

Matt nodded and stepped back to get in touch with Ksenia.

Ksenia was finishing up on the final report she would send to Warsaw. She turned to watch Felicity and saw that her arm was twitching. Her vitals were rushing to the roof, and before Ksenia could react fast enough, Felicity got a seizure. Ksenia panicked at first, not knwing what to do, but then she snapped out of it and injected Topamax in the IV drip, to prevent more seizures. The seizure was most probably a side-effect from the large amound of Talwin that Felicity had been injected with. Now her vitals were settling to normal and the twitcing had stopped.

Ksenia took a deep breath of relief. If things had turned to the worse and Felicity had been needing medical help, the situation had been... Well, they were in the middle of no where and the chance of getting medical help here as soon as they would've needed, was most not likely.

All of a sudden, there was a beep in her walkie-talkie, followed by Matt's voice.

"Ksenia, you there?" Ksenia hurried to reply, "Here." Matt continued to talk, explaining that Oliver needed proof that Felicity was safe and unharmed.

"I'm on it. I'm connecting my webcam to your-" Ksenia said and turned around... and froze. The stretcher was empty, Felicity was gone.


	12. Ep 11 - O sofrimento não é virtude, a al

**Chapter 11**

"**O sofrimento não é virtude, a alegria não é pecado."**

- _Paolo Coelho_

Felicity's whole body was screaming with pain, her head was pounding and her vision was greatly blurry, making it hard for her to see in the dim night. Maybe it had been a mistake to run from the small cabin, where Ksenia had kept her... But she had seen a chance to get out when Ksenia had turned her back, talking on the walkie-talkie and Felicity had grabbed her chance.

She had been quickly awakened in the middle of the seizures and after Ksenia had injected something into the IV drip that was attached to Felicity, she had come to her senses quite quickly. She had pretended to be out of it, so Ksenia wouldn't do something else, something worse to harm Felicity. She had a feeling that Ksenia didn't like her very much.

Felicity was well aware of the sedative drug that had been injected somehow before, when she had been in the brick cell and she had a vague memory of Matt coming in to her cell and injecting the same drog (probably) just moments before she had blacked out again and when she woke up, she was on the stretcher. Her memory of the whole experience was quite blurry, bieffect from the drug surely, and the last thing she remembered _vividly_ was her running from Oliver after their little... _moment_ on the balcony. She closed her eyes, not wanting to remember it.

Ksenia had no idea how she could tell Matt that Felicity was missing. How it had happened or how it was even possible, she had no idea. Felicity had been unconscious when she had turned away from her, atleast she had looked as if she was. Later when Matt had called through the walkie-talkie and Ksenia had turned again, she had been gone...

"That little _pizda_... She will get hers." Ksenia growled quietly and took the walkie-talkie in a firm hand when she heard Matt calling on her again, impatiently: "Ksenia! Are you asleep! Answer me!" Ksenia took a deep breath and sat down at the desk. "Misha... Felicity is gone. I turned away for a second and... She's vanished. I have no idea how it happened, she was unconscious..."

"How the hell could you let that happen, Ksenia!" She could hear Matt growl at her. He was still using his low angry-voice, which made Ksenia guess that Beatrycze, and maybe Oliver Queen, was standing next to him or close. "Do you have any idea what you've done, what you've risked! _Find her_ or you will have to pay the consequences!"

"I will, Misha, don't worry... We will fin-" Ksenia tried to calm him down but she was immediatly interrupted by Matt growling at her again, "Oh _shut up_ Ksenia! You've caused enough damage."

"Don't shout at me!" Ksenia growled back. "We shouldn't have to search for long, she still have amounts of both Talwin and Topamax in her system – don't ask, I will explain later." She continued, before Matt could ask more about that. "Both drugs are very strong and she should be very groggy... She might even pass out again if she really pushes herself."

"I don't care!" Matt growled back. "Just make the hell sure _you find Felicity_ and _bring her here_!"

Oliver was standing behind with Beatrycze, as Matt went to get in touch with whoever had Felicity. Oliver kept a steady eye on Matt, watching his every move and all of a sudden he could see how he flinched, throwing his arms out.

"What's wrong?" Oliver immediatly asked Beatrycze.

"Nothing, I assure you." Beatrycze said calmy, almost too calm. Oliver now started suspecting that she didn't know the connection between Felicity and Matt. "Could you go ask your partner anyway, please?" He asked, as kindly as he could. Beatrycze gave him a look, sighed while rolling her eyes and walked over to Matt.

As soon as she had gone far enough away from him, Oliver pressed the intercom button, placed on the inside of his jacket and got in touch with Diggle. "Digg. Smolak went to get in touch with whoever is keeping Felicity and something is wrong, it's taking too long. Listen carefully to everything that's being said. I'll stay put."

"Misha, Mr Queen is getting the idea that something is not right. Do tell me that's _not_ the case." Matt looked at her and her face expression changed immediatly. "_What_?"

Matt sighed. "There seems that... we have a bit of a situation." He explained, as calmly as possible, noticing how Beatrycze's face hardened, her eyes turning darker. "The girl got away somehow _but _Ksenia and her team... they're looking for her as we speak..."

"This is _not_ how this night was supposed to go, Misha!" Beatrycze said silently, Matt feeling the fury in her yet toned down voice.

She stayed silent for a moment. "All right, we can't do anything else than let Mr Queen know how the situation is. He will surely only want to find her, if he is as attached to her as you say..."

Misha nodded slowly and she continued, "Business talk isn't on the agenda any more..." She sighed. "The Warsaw office won't be pleased with this delay, they were relying on us... _me_ to seal the deal with Queen Consolidated to get ahead with the plan. Maybe I can get a white lie out so that it doesn't look as bad as it really is..."

"I'm to blame for this, I shouldn't have let Ksenia alone with the girl. We should get ahead with searching for her, don't you agree? It's getting colder by the minute and the terrain out here is quite difficult, even more so in the dark. Ksenia also let it slip that the girl had been injected with two very strong drugs moments before she managed to... get away."

Beatrycze sighed and nodded. "Fine. Get your men out looking for her. I will head back to Starling with Mr Queen, but you better tell him yourself about your mistake."

They turned around to go back to Oliver. Beatrycze had the perfect poker face, so Oliver couldn't read much out of her, the same with Matt's face but his body language told something totally different. Oliver's whole body tensed and a cold wind ran down his spine. Something was definatly wrong.

Beatrycze and Misha had hardly reached him, before Oliver stepped closer to them, "What's wrong?"

"Mr Queen, I assure you noth-" Beatrycze started but Oliver interrupted her. "Do_not_ lie to me! It's written all over your partner that something is the matter. _Where is Felicity_?"

Beatrycze turned her head towards Matt, her eyes demanding him to talk. "Mr Queen... There seem to have been complications at the location where Ms Smoak was held." He paused. "We have a team looking for her... I assure you they will find her."

"So, Mr Queen, you see all is in order. Despite this little setback." Beatrycze said. "Why don't you join me back to Starling City, and we can discuss the possibility of our companies working together?"

Oliver shook his head. "No chance! I'm not leaving without Felicity. I will look for her myself, as your so called _team_ seems to have great errors already."

"Mr Queen, I'm sure that Mr Smolak's team can search for the girl perfectly fine on their own. You most certainly don't have to-"

"Mrs Salomea, right now all my focus is on finding Felicity. And as for our companies working together..." He paused. "I do not like to see my friends and family getting threathened, it's not how I make business." Oliver turned to watch Matt, not seeing how Beatrycze face hardened, her eyes turned pitch black. "If anything has happened to Felicity, if she so much has a scrath on her... I will hold you accountable... _Mr Smolak_."

Matt, feeling the anger and fury from Oliver, nodded quickly. "Of course. Ms Smoak was last seen at a location about a 10 minute walk from here, it's in the area of Dun Laoghaire, north east direction." He pulled out a map, pointing out the location to Oliver. "Feel free to join my team, Mr Queen."

Oliver shook his head. "No, I'll manage fine on my own. Can you get there by car?"

"Yes, it's possible." Matt nodded and showed on the same map. "Go to Dun Laoghaire North and then you can go the last bit by foot, the trail is marked, it's not that far."

"Good." Oliver said and was about to get back to his car, when Beatrycze stopped him by grabbing his arm. Oliver yanked it immediatly out of her grip.

"Mr Queen. I would gladly appreciate if you reconsider my proposal. Our companies could use each others' areas of expertise."

"Considering the way you decided to reach out to me about the matter, Mrs Salomea, I'd say the chances are _very unlikely_." Oliver said, his tone of voice ice-cold. He then turned aroud and continued walking to his car.

Once Oliver was inside the car, he pressed the intercom again. "Digg, did you hear everything? Dun Laoghaire North. Get going, I will meet you there."

Felicity stopped running for a while, trying to see where she was. Looked like she was in the middle of no where, in a forest. There were large trees all around her, rocks and the terrain was horrible to get around in. She also could hear the vague sound of water in the farm together with motor sounds. So she had to be close to both water and a road.

It was cold and dark. Her vision was still blurry, her head had started to hurt more than usual and her heart was beating very fast, making it hard for her to catch her breath. She found a rock and almost collapsed on it when she sat down. She closed her eyes, tried to take slow, deep breaths, but it didn't help much. Her head pounded even more and her whole body was aching.

"Oh Felicity, what have you got yourself in to?" She mumbled to herself.

The cold was starting to get to her, she noticed that now when she was sitting still, feeling cold winds running through her and she had started to lose the feeling in her hands and arms. She realized that she couldn't sit still for long and decided to move again, but when she was about to get up, everything around her started spinning and it was all of a sudden hard for her to breath. She tried taking the same slow, deep breaths but it didn't help this time around. She took one step but she collapsed on the ground, hitting her head against something hard and soon she faded into darkness.

Oliver had never driven as fast as he drove now, trying to get to Felicity as soon as he could. He had no idea where she could be, from the map Matt had showed him, Dun Laoghaire was a big area and he hadn't even thought about where he would start. Luckily, Diggle was right behind him and they would team up and find her. Oliver was in regular contact with Diggle via the intercom, they could talk to each other without trouble now.

"Digg, I'll soon be at the meeting point. I'll wait for you there."

"Right. I'm five minutes behind you."

"Good."

Oliver continued the drive and soon he saw a sign where it said _Dun Laoghaire North_, where he turned and parked the car. He took a deep breath, preparing himself for the condition he and Diggle could find Felicity in.


	13. Ep 12 - Anyway, it doesn't matter how mu

**Chapter 12**

"**Anyway, it doesn't matter how much, how often, or how closely you keep an eye on things because you can't control it. Sometimes things and people just go. Just like that." **

― _Cecelia Ahern_

Oliver had only been waiting for a short moment, before Diggle joined him. Yet knowing that Diggle had heard everything that had been said when Oliver met with Matt Forwood and Beatrycze Salomea, Oliver was still surprised to see the clear look of worry on his friend and partner's face. He then understood that Felicity wasn't only important to him, she was also important to Diggle.

"Oliver, are you okay?" Diggle asked.

Oliver nodded, although he was not really sure if it was the truth. "I'm allright. We need to get going." He took a backpack out of the car. "Here is everything we need: flashlights, blankets, first aid kit and other medical supplies..."

"What do we do, do we split up?" Diggle asked.

"No, we should stay together. The terrain out here is quite difficult and now with the dark, it might be even more difficult." Oliver said, locked the car and was about to get going.

"Oliver." Diggle said. "I know you don't want to think about this right now, neither do I but... From what they... Smolak and Salomea told you, Felicity's condition can be..." He paused, not wanting to say it out loud. "We have no idea what kind of state she will be in, what kind of injuries she might have-"

"Digg." Oliver cut him off. His voice was steady but Diggle, knowing his friend, could still detect doubt and pain, hearing how it was close to breaking. "I can't think like that. _Not right now_. Our first and _only_ priority right now is to find Felicity."

"I know, man, I know." Diggle said. "I want that too. I just... I know that you care for her, what she means to you and..." He went silent, simply looking at Oliver.

"You care for her too." Oliver stated.

"We both know it's not the same." Diggle said, nodded. Oliver nodded back, realizing now that Diggle might have known about his true feelings for Felicity before he did. That was just typical Diggle.

After taking out two flashlights from the backpack, Oliver threw the backpack over his shoulders. "Let's go." He and Diggle looked up the marked trail that would take them closer to the location where Felicity last had been seen.

Felicity became to be in some sort of limbo between being conscious and unconscious. She didn't feel the same vivid pain anymore but her head was still pounding and her body ached. She tried to move but couldn't, instead the ache in her body grew stronger and she faded back to being unconscious. A memory appeared to her...

"_So now we move on to plan B!" The Count shouted and Felicity could for a second feel the sharp needles of the syringe, filled with liquid _Vertigo_, brush against her neck, sending ice cold vibes down her spine. She flinched and her eyes focused on Oliver, standing a bit away from her, bow in hand with an arrow aiming at The Count. His eyes were filled with anger, his hands on the bow not moving at all._

_Felicity all of a sudden panicked, knowing that the outcome of this would have Oliver break his promise about not killing anyone anymore, the promise he made months ago after the undertaking and Tommy's death. Felicity knew very well how tortured Oliver was over this, losing Tommy had been so hard on him, she could see it in his face. If he killed again, for _her_, he would hate himself even more and he would resent her for sure, _hate _her even... Having him hate her? No, she couldn't let that happen... How could she still be part of what Oliver, Diggle and herself did – if Oliver hated her?_

"_Oliver, don't! Not for me!" She yelled out, focusing on Oliver, telling him that he couldn't do this._

"_Quiet, please, I'm threathening." The Count growled and tightened his grip around Felicity's arm, which made her flinch again and she had to breath very fast to keep the tears from running, her eyes locked on Oliver. _

"_Lower. your. Bow." The Count went on. The dark, evil tone of voice he spoke with freaked Felicity out. _

_Oliver face expression immediatly changed the second he lowered his bow, throwing the arrow away, making it clink when hitting the floor. He was breathing more unsteady, more loudly now, his eyes focusing on the Count but once in a while his eyes met Felicity's._

"_Your problem is with me..." Oliver said, the worry, despair even, in his voice breaking through. "It's not with her."_

"_Well, then consider this your penalty for making me go to plan B in the first place." The Count stated and in the corner of her eye Felicity could see him moving the syringe away from her and then it quickly came closer to her neck... And as she collapsed on the floor, feeling the Count's grip around her arm loosen, she could heard the sound of arrows being fired and then glass shattering with such impact that it made her jump... Her heart was beating so fast and she crawled away from the spot where it all had happened, shaking with the tears quickly appearing... _

_She was crawled up on the floor, shaking greatly, breathing quickly to keep the tears away. All of a sudden she could hearing someone saying, whispering "Hey..." and she gasped, small sob-sounds came forward and she could hear the same voice repeating "Hey..." and she felt a hand on her arm. _

_Still shaken from the events of moments before, she panicked, gasped louder and flinched at the hand touching her, trying to get it off her, when the same voice again said, "Sch, sch... Sch, sch... Hey, it's all right."_

_Felicity finally looked up and met Oliver's gaze and she breathed out of relief. "You're safe." Oliver said as he kept his gaze, as he was making sure she was unharmed. _

_Felicity noticed a gash showing through his green suit, realizing the Count must've hit him when fireing his gun earlier. "Oh, you've got shot." She said, sobs hiding in her soft voice. Her hand went to Oliver's arm where the gash was, and Oliver's hand instantly moved from her arm to her face._

"_Hey." He said, making her meet his gaze. "It's nothing."_

_Felicity let out a sigh of relief, feeling her breath slowing down, just as her heart beat. Oliver soon rose to his feet, Felicity turning her head to follow him. She watched him go look out of the window, his gaze travelling down. She couldn't really see his face but she knew what this must do to him. Killing someone after he had promised _not _to... She took a deep breath, knowing this was all because of her – she had done this to Oliver._

Ksenia had joined Matt back at the base. She had seen no use in joining the search party for Felicity, the team she had with her was better made for that. She also knew that Misha must be furious at her, for making this happen, so she wanted to try to talk nice and make him understand, she didn't have to take the blame.

But when reaching the base, Matt did hardly acknowledge she was there. He barely looked at her and walked into the base. Beatrycze was no where to be seen, which meant that she had most probably gone back to Starling City. Just as well, Ksenia couldn't stand the woman and having her growl just made the whole situation worse.

When Matt had avoided her for the millionth time, Ksenia had enough and she walked up to him. He was monitoring several computer screens and talking with the team of his that was out in the forrest, looking for Felicity. From what Ksenia could hear, they still hadn't found her. Matt didn't show it, but Ksenia could tell he was getting more and more worried by the minute.

"Misha, could you please stop acting like a pouting child and talk to me!" Ksenia said. "I am sorry that Felicity got away, but it's not my fault, I had no idea she was awake and could get away. She shouldn't have been able to get away!"

Misha said nothing and Ksenia only got angrier. "Oh, for God's sake!" She pressed herself in front of Matt and made him look at her. "Misha, please! Stop acting like this and _talk _to me!" Matt still wouldn't say anything and Ksenia let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine, I give up."

"You have no idea what you've done." Matt spoke. "You have risked so much and you act like you had nothing to do with it. You let Felicity get away, you let her get away while still having strong drugs in her system..." He went silent. "Not only did you risk our company's project, a project that has been planned for a long time and a lot being risked, both amount of time and the severe amount of money that's being put in... You put someone's _life_ at risk. Felicity might be my daughter but that is beside the point right now. When I took her here, I had _not _planned to risk her life. I took her to get the attention of Oliver Queen and... We got it allright but _not_ the kind we had _hoped _for." He went silent again, longer this time and Ksenia could tell he wasn't joking around. "I have no respect for what you did, Ksenia. I won't try to talk nice to Beatrycze about you, you will have to do that on your own."

"She doesn't scare me." Ksenia said. "I've dealt with far more dangerous people than her-"

"You should be scared, Ksenia." Matt said. "Like I said, I won't interfer with Beatrycze's plans for you. All I can do for you, is put you in a car back to Starling City. Beatrycze will take it from there.

Ksenia stared at him. "What?! Misha, no! I won't go!"

Matt then looked at him and Ksenia was shocked over how cold his eyes were, they had never been that way before. "You don't have a say, Ksenia. Get in the car."

Oliver and Diggle had been walking for what felt like hours. As they now stopped for a short second, they could both feel the chill breeze coming from the creek that they coul both see and hear a short distance ahead of them. There was no sign of Felicity and Oliver was starting to get worried.

"We should've found her by now." He said and turned to Diggle. "She couldn't have made it far, _where is she?_"

"We will find her, don't worry." Diggle said, trying to sound positive but even he could hear the hesitation in his own voice. When Oliver looked at him, his face expression filled with worry and exhaustion from walking in the difficult terrain that was Dun Laoghaire, Diggle once again said:

"Oliver. We _will _find Felicity." He then took notice to the fact that Oliver looked exhausted. "Hey, you look wrecked, do you want to take a little break? Have some water?"

"I don't have time for that, I have to find Felicity..." Oliver started and was about to get going again, when Diggle stopped him, acting like the "parent":

"Just stop for a second and have a zip of water." Diggle said firmly, put his hand on Oliver's shoulder and handing him a bottle of water.

Oliver took the water bottle and first took a zip and then several ones. He appearently had been needing it more than he had admitted to himself. He then immediatly gave it back to Diggle, ready to continue, when he saw the look on Diggle's face. "What?"

Diggle didn't say anything, but something was the matter for sure, it was written all over his face.

"Diggle, _what_ is wrong?" Oliver said with his loud voice.

"Look over there, across the creek." Diggle said and pointed. "I can't make it out for sure but..." He paused. "It does look like someone is laying there, by the rocks..."

Oliver looked in the direction Diggle was pointing. He couldn't see properly due to the darkness and the forest being in his way, but it was definatly something or some_one_ laying there.

"Do you think..." Oliver started. "Do you think it could be-?"

"I couldn't say, not from this distance anyway... I could go closer, to see what or... _who _it is." Diggle said. He looked at Oliver, who looked quite distressed. "Oliver, I think you should stay here... Just in case..." Oliver shot him a look and Diggle nodded, putting his hands up. "Alright, alright..."

"I'm coming with you." Oliver said. "I ca... I can't leave behind, knowing she could be... I have to make sure she's safe. I can't-" Oliver went silent. And by the look of his face, Diggle knew for certain what he had known for a long while already: Oliver Queen was in love, _very much so_, with Felicity Smoak.

Diggle was only glad Oliver had finally admitted it to himself, but he also feared what would happen if the figure laying by the rocks actually was Felicity and she ended up being... _not _in a good state. Diggle had no idea what Smolak had done to her, what damages she might have got and what had happened when she had ran away from the location where she had been held last... Oliver hadn't said much, but he had let Diggle know it was bad and that they had to find Felicity quick, that every minute counted.

Oliver took one more zip from the water bottle and handed it back to Diggle. "Digg... If that really is Felicity... I don't know what to do if..."

"Don't worry, man." Diggle said. "We will get her back home safe and sound. I have medical training from the army, I'll try my very best to make sure she is allright. She is important to me too, Oliver."

Oliver looked at him, his eyes blank and filled with agony. "Thank you."

Diggle nodded. "Don't mention it. Let's go, it looks like it's a tough walk."

Felicity's eyes shot open as a lightning bold of excruciating pain shot through her. She would've screamed, if she hadn't been so numb all over her body and laying in the cold for whatever amount of time, had made her lose her voice. She tried to move, but the pain paralyzed her. So she was clearly out of the limbo between being conscious and unconscious now, that was sure. Her head was pounding and she could feel blood running down the side of her face. That was where she had hit her head when collapsing, she remembered that much. Her left foot was also aching, she must've hurt it somehow.

She also felt a weird, uncomfortable pressure over her chest, like someone was sitting on her and not moving, so she kept her breathing steady, to ease – as little as it helped – the pain. She closed her eyes, trying to think about something positive and relaxing, because as it looked now, she wouldn't make it out of here alive and that was very... _worrying_.

All of a sudden, she could hear voices in the far distance and soon after flashes of light, which she realized must be flashlights. She had no idea what to do. Could it be Oliver and Diggle... or was it someone else looking for her? Like men working for her father? If it was the latter, she had to hide. She pressed herself up on all four, gasping for air as the pain hit her hard again and fighting with every fiber of her being not to scream. She got hold of a crack in the rock and pulled herself up. She nearly collapsed again, but she fought the pain and saw a larger crack in the rock, large enough for her to crawl into. When pulling herself into the crack, she cut her arm on a sharp-edged rock, tearing her blouse and she flinched, "Ouch!"

A moment later, she could clearly hear the voices of a group, talking and from the unknown language that Felicity guessed was East European. They were working with her father and that made Felicity press herself closer to the cold stone wall and closed her eyes in fear, her whole body shaking and her heart beating really fast.

"_Chomu my zmusheni shukaty dlya divchyny , koly vona bula Kseniya , khto vtratyv yiyi ? Kseniya maye buty odyn skhodzhennya cherez tsey pekelʹnyy lis_!"

"_Vona zahvynchuvannya bosa , vona, zvychayno , otrymuye vilʹnyy prokhid_!_"_

"_Zatkny pashchu i trymaty ochi vidkrytymy_! _H- n Smolak skorotytʹ vam , yakshcho my ne znaydemo divchynku_! _Yoho nakaz buv duzhe zrozumilo , my znayty divchynu do Queen robytʹ ... abo bude krov_."

Felicity could see the light of their flashlights dancing on the edge of the rocks where she was and she held her breath, frightened they would find her. Soon though, their loud voices disappeared slowly and Felicity took a deep breath.

"Oh thank God..." She whispered.

All of a sudden, the pressure on her chest came back, together with the lightning bolt of pain striking through her body and her head started aching. Once again, she had to fight to not scream out the excruciating pain and she curled herself together, letting the tears run, convincing herself it would make it all better.

Oliver and Diggle had now reached the edge of the creek when they saw the lights shimmering through the darkness and heard the voices. Diggle held his out arm to stop Oliver and signaled to shut their flashlights off. They first stood silent, waiting for the voices to come closer or get away; they came closer.

"They are Smolak's men, they're out looking for Felicity." Oliver said. "I also heard Queen being mentioned, which means... We have to find Felicity before they do."

"Yeah, I got that too. We have to move carefully, they can spot us..." Diggle said. "Let's get over the creek first."

They carefully stepped down in the ice cold water, and carefully started walking over. The creek wasn't that deep or wide, but the water running in it was quite strong, which forced Oliver and Diggle to fight very strongly not to get pulled away by the stream.

It took them a while, but soon they had crossed over the creek. Oliver handed his backpack to Diggle. He was determined to get up to the rocks and see if it was Felicity and then make sure she was safe and unharmed.

"Oliver, just... be careful, allright." Diggle said.

"I always am." Oliver said and let out a small laugh when the look on Diggle's face told him _History says otherwise_. "I will signal to you when the coast is clear and I have Felicity."

He then took a deep breath and started walking, or more like climbing, up the steep uphill.

The voices of Smolak's men had disappeared but it didn't mean they had disappeared from the area, therefor Oliver had to be very careful. He had no idea what Smolak had ordered his men to do if they found him, knew he was looking for Felicity too, but he guessed it wasn't quite positive.

Oliver had to fight the last steps up to the hill, making his muscles ache with agony. When he got up to the rocks, he immediatly looked around, trying to see something out of the ordinary. He then noticed something on the edge of a rock. It was a small piece of fabric, looking like something of a blouse and Oliver knew, Felicity was near. He felt a small relief, knowing that it had been Felicity who they'd saw earlier, but that disappeared immediatly when knowing the danger wasn't over yet.

He took a look around and thought for a second where Felicity could've gone, when he heard movement from the rocks. He carefully moved in on the rocks, finding a large crack. If it had been him, he would've gone in her, to hide from whoever was looking for him... Could this be where Felicity was?

He carefully stepped in, trying to be as silent as possible and soon he saw her, laying on the ground curled up, shaking from the cold. _Felicity_.


	14. Ep 13 - You call it hope – that fire or

**Chapter 13**

"**You call it hope – that fire or fire!**

**It is but agony of desire!"**

- _Edgar Allen Poe, _Tamerlane

The relief Oliver felt when he saw Felicity, was nothing he had ever felt before. It felt like an eternity since he and Diggle discovered she was missing and started their search, but he had found her. But the relief immediatly turned to worry, when he got closer and saw that Felicity was injured, her arm bloody and she had a gash in her head, that had left behind a nasty bruise.

"Digg, I have visual on Felicity." He silently talked into the intercom.

"_Oh thank God_!" Diggle could be heard letting out a sigh of relief. "_Is she allright_?"

"She seems to be..." Oliver said, not wanting to worry his friend. "I'll bring her down as quickly as I can."

The closer Oliver got, the more he realized that she was in bad shape; he could barely hear her breathing and what he heard of it sounded raspy. She was shaking really bad, probably due to the cold. When he came close enough to see her face, he was shocked to see how pale she looked and the gash in her forehead had stared to bleed again. Her eyes were closed and her lips were without colour.

Oliver kneeled besides her. "Felicity..." He whispered.

He carefully inspected the injuries, the ones he could see, Felicity seemed to have. The most serious injury was the gash in her head, it was still bleeding. Oliver took the first-aid box he had brought and picked out the items he needed so he could tend to the wound. He carefully cleaned it the best he could and put a band aid on it. It would stop the bleeding and it had to do for now. He was also worried about Felicity's weak breathing and how incredibly pale she looked. He had to get Felicity to a hospital as quickly as possible, as he couldn't get her the help she needed on location. He grabbed a blanket he had brought and wrapped it around Felicity. As Oliver's fingers brushed against her hands, he flinched at how cold they were. It was understandable on one hand, as it was getting colder by the minute out here but... on the other hand, he was also becoming more and more worried as he saw that she was in a bad stare.

"Felicity..." He carefully stroak her cheek. "Felicity, what did they do to you?"

In that moment, as his hand went down her cheek, Felicity's eyes shot open. She looked around in confusion but seconds later she found Oliver's gaze. She looked surprised at first and then she very quietly sighed out in relief,

"Oli... Oliver..." She tried to move, to sit up but flinched with pain and let out a silent gasp. "Oh!"

"Hey..." Oliver said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Don't move, you're hurt." He smiled carefully. "You had to run, didn't you?"

Felicity took a deep breath and once again Oliver could hear the rasp in her breathing. "I'm sorry..." Felicity whispered. "I'm sorry for... for dragging you out to the middle of nowhere-"

"Hey..." Oliver said. "Don't. I will always come for you, no matter what."

Felicity looked at him. "She was going to hurt me... hurt me _more_, if I didn't. The woman, she was wo... working for my father..." She paused. "I don't understand what he's doing here, I..." She took a breath again and once again flinched with pain, which made Oliver flinch and he put his hand on her cheek. "Careful, careful..."

Felicity looked at him. "He didn't hurt you, did he? My fath-"

"No." Oliver shook his head. "Never mind him, what matters now is _you_." He stroak her cheek. "I was so worried about you, Felicity... I... I told you... I will always come for you, Felicity. You're-"

He looked at her and smiled carefully. "Let's get you home."

Felicity smiled gently. She had always known Oliver would come for her, and now he was here. _Oliver was here__._ She knew there had never been a doubt in his mind that he would come find her and every doubt she'd had on her own, like when she ran away from him at the Fairmont, had vanished the second she saw him out here. Every feeling about Oliver she had ever pushed away, refusing to admit to herself, feeling horrible about having... It was all gone and for the first time, she could finally admit to herself that she was... _utterly and completly in love_ with Oliver. Truth to be told, the first time she had met Oliver, when he walked into the IT department at Queen Consolidated with the bullet-hole-filled laptop, that was when Felicity first had fallen in love with Oliver.

"Oliver..." She slowly said, putting her hand on top of Oliver's, still on her cheek.

She was about to continue when the pressure on her chest came back, together with the lightning bolt of pain striking through her body. She gasped loudly as reaction and the shock from it made her turn to her side. She looked at Oliver as her eyes shot wide open.

"Felicity?" He said, holding her steady. "Felicity, what-?"

Felicity grabbed on to him, her eyes filling with tears. "Oliver... Oliver, I can't brea-" The pressure on her chest became tighter, she had trouble breathing and she screamed as the excrutiating pain took over. Oliver flinched when he heard her scream, it was nothing he had heard before and it scared him.

He now understood that Felicity was in a much worse state than he had thought from the beginning and he had to get help as soon as possible. There was no time to get her to a hospital, so he had to bring the medical aid to her.

Oliver pressed the intercom. "Diggle... Something is wrong with Felicity, I need you to get up here. Bring everything. _Hurry_."

Oliver then turned to Felicity, who had stopped screaming and to Oliver's despair, she was barely breathing. He searched for a pulse, which he could barely find. It was very weak but it was there. He looked at her, stroaking her face and feeling her cold skin under his fingers. He felt a mix of angst and despair rise inside of him and he leaned over Felicity. She was so still, laying there unconscious.

"Felicity... Please, don't leave me. You can't leave me, I can't lose you. I need you..." He took a deep breath, closing his eyes as they filled with tears. "I love you. _I love you_."


	15. Ep 14 - When you lose touch with your in

**Chapter 14**

"**When you lose touch with your inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world." **

_- Eckhart Tolle_

_Two weeks later_

Oliver walked into the still empty conference room at Queen Consolidated and he was, for once, on time. The reason to this was simple, he had come straight from _Mater Private Hospital_, where he had watched over Felicity at her bedside all night, like he had done ever since he and Diggle had brought her there, that fateful night two weeks ago. Oliver didn't remember much from that night.

It had been a struggle for Oliver and Diggle to get Felicity from the rocks, over the creek and back to the car. On the drive from Cameron Lake back to Starling City, Oliver had held Felicity and kept check on her pulse, as weak and faded as it was, every minute. By the time they had reached Mater Private and he carried Felicity in his arms, Oliver had been so emotionally drained, exhausted and wrecked that once he had put Felicity on an available bed, he had collapsed on one of the sofas and he hadn't been able to move. The emotional exhaustion hadn't only been because of him being scared to death for Felicity's sake, it was also because he had made his _decleration of love _when Felicity had been at her very worst and he had been afraid she wouldn't make it. It was simply the matter of _three little words_, but this was the impact they had on Oliver.

Noticing Oliver's malfunction, Diggle had therefor done the talking with the doctors, where he had explained that Felicity had been abducted and she most probably suffered from a severe trauma and they didn't exactly know all the injuries she had, except the visable ones. He also told them that she was still in danger as they didn't know what the people who had taken her from the beginning had planned, and that her admission at the hospital should be kept as private as possible, to keep her from more harm. One of the doctors, Dr Byrne, had promised both Diggle and Oliver that he would gather a small team of doctors and nurses and they would be the only ones knowing about Felicity being placed at the hospital.

Felicity's condition had been very critical for the first days, life-threatening even as she went into _Cardiac Arrest_ but luckily she recovered. Oliver hadn't been at the hospital when it had happened, instead it had been Diggle and from what he had told Oliver afterwards, it had been very close they would've lost Felicity and it had been very scary. After that, Oliver hadn't left Felicity's side – unless he _really had _to.

Dr Byrne tried explaining the seriousness of her condition to Oliver at one occasion, but it was all simply a blur to Oliver as the only thought running through his mind was that Felicity might be dying, the woman he _loved_ might be dying and she would never know how he felt about her, how important she was to him. He had however gathered as much from what Dr Byrne told him, that during her abduction Felicity had been injected with, _Talwin_ and _Topamax_, two strong drugs that normally shouldn't under any circumstances be mixed together and this had caused severe damage. On top of this, Felicity had both _Anemia _and _Hypothermia_. The Hypothermia got better within the next few days and the Anemia was slowly improving.

During her first week at Mater Private, Felicity had been getting blood transfusions, in small amounts, to get the Anemia under control but as she still had the fever and got treated with Antibiotics, they had to stop the transfusions as there was a risk the fever wouldn't improve but only get worse.

She had been awake short moments of time, but not so that no one could speak to her. Once, in the middle of the night when Oliver had been sitting by her side and holding her hand, she had opened her eyes and looked at Oliver, but it had been so brief that he had a hard time knowing if she had recognized him. When Oliver had asked Dr Byrne why she didn't wake up properly, Dr Byrne had said it could be a few reasons; it could be the trauma she had sufferd that kept her unconscious, that she didn't want to wake up due to what had happened, it could be the fever or the aftermath of the doses of Talwin and Topamax she had in her system. It was a mystery that she hadn't woken up yet, and it had been nearly two weeks. Dr Byrne and his team was having a hard time figuring out how to solve it, as Felicity's condition hadn't improved much – or atleast as Dr Byrne and his team had hoped.

_Dr Byrne sat down with Oliver earlier the same morning, giving him the latest update on Felicity._

"_Mr Queen, it looks like Felicity's condition isn't improving the way we had hoped," Dr Byrne started. "She is still in a critical state and the fever isn't improving either. The Anemia has slowly getting better thanks to the blood transfusions but we've stopped them now due to the fever and..." He paused again. "I'm afraid that if her condition doesn't improve during the coming days and we don't get the fever down... She's hanging on by the thread." _

_At that moment, Oliver felt like his whole world was tumbling down around him and he had only nodded as Dr Byrne continued to talk. "We'll keep a close check on her during the next 24 hours and if her condition hasn't improved, we'll have to consider medical induced coma." When hearing the last part, Oliver flinched and Dr Byrne quickly continued, _

"_Trust me, Mr Queen, it's nothing we do lightly here but I need you to understand that Felicity is very ill and we're rapidly running out of other options... Not to mention time." He looked at Oliver. "Mr Queen, I simply need you to be prepared on what might happen and since I gathered Felicity doesn't have any close family... You're the one who makes the decision."_

"_Okay... Okay..." Oliver whispered, not knowing what else to say. "You have to do whatever you can, Dr Byrne, no matter what." He paused. "Do whatever you can to make Felicity better."_

_Dr Byrne nodded, they shook hands and Oliver left the hospital to continue Queen Consolidated. _

Now Oliver was standing in the conference room, looking out over the Starling City skyline. He tried to keep his mind focused on the coming meeting, he had to be as alert as ever since Isabel was now back from the _Company tour_, but he had a really hard time focusing on anything else than Felicity. He also wondered what Smolak and Beatrycze Salomea were planning, if they had left Starling or were in hiding and planning their next move. Since he had been guarding at Felicity's side for the past two weeks, Oliver hadn't been putting on his green suit but he had searched for any trace whatsoever of Smolak and Salomea at the lair in Verdant – without any luck.

Diggle, having more freetime now when Oliver was only being _Oliver_ without being _the Arrow_, did everything he could to find them, he had been back to Cameron Lake and carefully searched around the area where they found Felicity, he had been in touch with international friends of his, asking about Smolak and Salomea – but nothing.

_On the way from the hospital to QC, Oliver called Diggle to let him now about Dr Byrne's news._

"_Induced coma?" Diggle was shocked. "Oliver, you didn't agree to it, right? It could do more harm than good!"_

"_I do know about the risks, Digg," Oliver had said, feeling exhausted. "Dr Byrne explained them to me but he also... He also said they were running out of options _and time_, so this might be the only our... her only chance to get better."_

"_Oliver-" Diggle had said, worry in his voice, but Oliver had interupted him:_

"_Digg, it's either this or we lose her. I won't allow that, _no chance in hell_. So I need you to continue being on the look out for Smolak and Salomea, we _need_ to find them."_

"_Okay. Willl you go back to the hospital or do you want me to stop by?"_

"_I will go back as soon as I can but I don't know when it will be... We have the meeting this morning, who knows how long it will take or when I will be able to get away. So you can go if you want. If you do... Keep me updated."_

"_I will. She will get better, Oliver."_

"_I hope so."_

"Good morning, Oliver." Oliver was pulled back from his deep thoughts by the sound of his mother's voice. Oliver breathed out and turned around to face her.

"Mom."

"Are you alright?" Moira continued. "You look pale and tired."

"Yeah, I'm fine... I just came from the hosp-" Oliver stopped the second he saw the face expression on Moira's face. She was obviously not pleased how her son was spending his nights; sitting by the bedside of a girl who _worked_ for him (she had no idea how much more of importance Felicity really was in Oliver's life) and who everyone at the company thought Oliver was having an affair with. She had made no comment about it, she was subtle like that, but Oliver knew his mother and he knew she still hadn't really got over the "spectacle" caused by him and Felicity at the Fairmont Gala, which ended up in every magazine and on every TV channel for days afterwards. Moira hadn't been pleased, to say the least, but Oliver hadn't actually been available for her _rage _as he had been devoting his full attention to Felicity and her well-being, plus he expected that Thea had been able to calm their mother down.

Also, he didn't care what his mother thought, not in this case. It didn't matter what she or the company's employees were gossiping about, the most important thing was that Felicity got better... Because God knew what Oliver would do if he lost her.

Moira kept looking at Oliver for a moment, without saying anything. Finally, she did speak.

"Very well then. I will go collect the documents for the meeting, you can..." She sighed. "I don't know, get a cup of coffee. Sort yourself out, Oliver. I need you to be fully focused on today's meeting. You don't look like a CEO at the moment."

Oliver only nodded and went from the conference room to his office.

At lunch time, the meeting was still on-going and Isabel was presenting short slides about her _company tour_. It had been successful, both the Asian and European headquarters were willing to help out with financial aid, plus representives from the headquarters in Helsinki and in Dublin were interested in coming to Starling, visiting the company.

Oliver wasn't paying attention to what Isabel was saying – his mind was back at Mater Private with Felicity, so when he heard his name being mentioned, he nearly jumped out of his chair.

"Oliver, are you with us?" He heard Isabel say.

"I'm sorry, what?" Oliver looked at Isabel, his face expression completly clueless. "Excuse me, Isabel, I wasn't paying attention. You were saying?"He chose to ignore the look Moira gave him.

Isabel, in her turn, looked around the room.

"I was simply explaining to the rest of the people gathered here today that it would be in the company's best interest if we together as co-CEOs would visit the company's affiliate in Dublin together. For the Charity gala."

Oliver, being completely clueless, nodded and smiled. "That sounds great, Isabel. Us keeping an united front, exactly what the company needs." In the corner of his eye he thought he saw an approved look from Moira.

"Excellent." Isabel said. "We're leaving on Sunday." She looked down on her folder of papers again. "Now, I would like to discuss the Applied Sciences-"

And the rest was a blur to Oliver. Had he just agreed to fly across the Atlantic with Isabel? While Felicity was in the hospital, with no one knowing if she would become better? How would he talk his way out of this one?

At the same time, his phone gave out a silent beep and Oliver flinched, knowing that the beep was for emergencys only. He picked the phone up and read a message from Diggle:

**- 911 - **

**Felicity suffers from TBI**

**Med. Induced coma happening right now !**

**Call ASAP**


	16. Ep 15 - Yesterday is but today's memory,

**Chapter 15**

**Yesterday is but today's memory, and tomorrow is today's dream.**

**- **_Khalil Gibran_

__Diggle was sitting outside in the waiting room at Mater Private Hospital. He still was quite shaken up from the events from a few hours ago, when he had been sitting by Felicity's bed side when something had gone wrong - the machines showing Felicity's vitals had started to beep like mad, and Diggle had rushed for Dr Byrne.

Within seconds, Dr Byrne and his small team had reached the room and they had asked Diggle to wait outside. Before Diggle could register what happened, they were rolling out Felicity and rushed her of somewhere.

Dr Byrne had called out instructions to his team and then come back to Diggle.

"Mr Diggle..." Dr Byrne started. "It appeares that Ms Smoak is suffering from a _TBI_ or _traumatic brain injury_. I have to make some more tests, but from what I could tell, it seemed to be a milder TBI and Ms Smoak is most likely to recover fully. This, however, means we have to move up the time table for the medical induced coma so that the pressure on her brain gets relieved as soon and as quickly as possible. "

"As soon as we have made sure Felicity hasn't suffered any complications from the TBI, we'll move her to the _ICU_ and the induced coma will take place at 6pm and depending on the results, Felicity will be kept sedated for a maximum of 60 hours. That's out time table right now."

"Please wait for Mr Queen before you do anything." Diggle told Dr Byrne. "I know he would want to be here."

"He won't be allowed up to the ICU, Mr Diggle. And the situation is quite critical so we have to take action _now_." Dr Byrne explained. "Mr Queen may be present when we wake Ms Smoak up from the coma in 48 hours minimum."

"What if something goes wrong while she's in the coma, there's always a risk with it, right? What about when you wake her up and... _she doesn't_."

"There are always risks, but this is Felicity's only chance to a full recovery. We'll be able to get the Anemia under control and make sure she doesn't get a fever again or an infection... And for as her waking up from the coma... We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Right now, Mr Diggle, you have to trust me and my team that we'll do anything in our power to make Felicity better."

"Please do whatever you can to make her better. She's very important to all of us." Diggle said and nodded, trying to keep calm.

Dr Byrne nodded back. "I've gathered that. Mr Queen has barely left her side since she was admitted, she must be very special to him." Diggle didn't say anything, he just nodded and smiled lightly. Dr Byrne continued, "I better join my team. Tell Mr Queen that the same security precaution will be taken on the ICU as here. I will keep you updated and you can talk with Siobhan at the front desk."

"Thank you, doctor." Diggle said and shook Dr Byrne's hand.

As Dr Byrne walked away, Diggle picked up his phone and texted Oliver with the latest news. As Oliver, Diggle had been so focused on Felicity and her condition, plus making sure Oliver kept it together and not fell apart – he hadn't been in the best shape since the night they brought Felicity to the hospital, that Diggle had almost forgotten about his personal life, meaning Lyla and the changes that were happening in their lives.

"What do you mean you can't come with me to Dublin?" Isabel said with a loud voice. "Oliver, you said, in front of everyone at the meeting, you would come with me. I've already made all the arrengements, confirmed with the Dublin office... You can't change your mind!"

"I'm sorry Isabel, something has come up... I won't be able to make it." Oliver said. He had only minutes earlier recieved a text message from Diggle with the latest news about Felicity. She was being placed in the medical induced coma in a few hours and it would last for only a few days, Oliver couldn't risk leaving when there was a chance Felicity would wake up completly and fully recover.

"No, I won't allow this vague excuse from you, _I will not_. We are going to Dublin and you will represent _Queen Consolidated_ like the true CEO you are! End of discussion!" She turned around to face Moira. "Moira, could you please tell some sense into your son. I'm late for a meeting." With that she gave Oliver one last look and walked away, her high heels clinking against the marble floor.

Oliver sighed and looked at his mother, who didn't seem pleased at all. "Mom..."

"Oliver, please. I don't want to hear it." Moira said. "I have no idea what's going on with you, but I'm on Isabel's side on this. You're going with her to Dublin. You need to start showing interest in this company or people will start to lose faith in you and your ability to lead." Oliver still didn't say anything and Moira continued:

"Oliver, please! You need to get your act together. You have to stop watching over the girl at the hospital, you're only causing rumors and people talking behind your back, the _company_'s back and focus on being _Oliver Queen_." Oliver was silent still and Moira sighed, shaking her head in disappointment as she started to walk away.

"I don't care, mam." He finally spoke and Moira turned to face him. "I don't care if people start rumours or talk behind my back. I don't care at all. I also won't get my act together because Felicity - _the girl_ I've been watching over at the hospital is... She's very important to me and her well-being is all I care about because..."

He paused, looking at Moira, who was stunned by his little speech. "I'm not discussing this with you, mother. I have to go." With that, he walked out of the office and picked up his phone, calling Diggle.


	17. Ep 16 - This is the way the world ends N

**Chapter 16**

"**This is the way the world ends**

**Not with a bang but a whimper." **

_- T.S. Eliot_

Isabel was still furious about Oliver's reluctancy to step up and lead the company with her, as she stepped into the lobby of _The Strathcona Hotel_, the hotel where she would have her meeting. She couldn't understand why he had all of a sudden lost interest in the company, when he had been fighting her so hard in the beginning when she had stepped in and threathened to buy up the company. Oliver had lost his touch lately and Isabel was worried. Not only for her own personal agenda (oh, she had one!) but for the sake of the company, as everyone looked to Oliver for leadership, she knew that she hadn't gained the truts of the QC employees. But she had been more of a leader during the past few weeks than what Oliver had been. He had instead been distant, not paying attention and easily losing his temper when someone, especially Isabel or his mother, tried to make him show more interest.

The Strathcona hotel was located in one of the low-income parts of Starling City and Isabel was being very hesitant about being here. She didn't exactly fit in with her designer outfit – her twist front dress from _Givenchy_ in black, with its sleeveless silhouette, plunging cowl neckline, waist embracing gathered bodice and flattering straight hem and _Sarp Oder_ heels. She had already got unwanted looks from some shabby-looking men sitting at the bar, where she had had several shots of Vodka, mostly to calm her nerves from the frustration of dealing with Oliver Queen. On a sub-conscious level, though, Isabel liked the attention - even if it was from low-life drunks – she knew she looked incredible.

It was an understatement but it was not exactly a hotel she would've chosen for a meeting, she would've chosen a more central hotel, with more... style and more high maintenence. However, she had understood that this meeting needed to be kept away from places like that, that it needed to be kept secret and the instructions had been very clear: The Strathcona Hotel or nothing at all.

After going by the front desk to ask for the room number where she would have the meeting, she went to the elevator. She was surprised to learn that even an underclass hotel like the Strathcona had a penthouse suit. She found the elevator, stepped in and pressed the button for the top floor. The elevator was slow and seemed to be unstable, but soon enough she reached the top. She stepped out and looked around to find the door for the penthouse suit, and she walked up, knocking on the door.

It took a moment, but someone, a dark-haired woman finally answered the door. "Ms Rochev. _Dobry wieczór_."

"Добрый вечер." Isabel answered.

The door was held open for her and she stepped into the suit. She looked around, again surprised over the fact that it looked quite nice. Even if most of the furniture seemed to be from IKEA.

"May I get you something to drink, Ms Rochev?" The woman asked.

"A _Kir Royale_, please." Isabel replied and sat down in one of the sofas. "Could you let them know I'm here?"

"Of course, Ms Rochev. I will let them know you're here and be right over with your drink." The woman nodded and walked into another room.

She returned a moment later with the Kir Royale, to which Isabel simply nodded.

"Isabel Rochev." She heard a familiar voice say. "_Mój najdroższy przyjaciel_."

She looked up, a smile carefully appearing on her lips, as she faced the blonde woman, who looked as incredible as always in a créme coloured _Crepe Sheath Dress_. "Beatrycze Salomea." Isabel carefully stood up and the two women greeted each other with a gentle hug.

"You look beautiful." Beatrycze smiled. "I'm glad you could make it." Beatrycze said. "I trust you didn't have any trouble finding the hotel?"

"You too look as stunning as always. And of course, I always have time for you." Isabel smiled. "I found the hotel without trouble, surprisingly enough... However, I'm surprised that you chose this kind of hotel, it's not... your style."

"I'm well aware." Beatrycze said, making a face as she looked around at the vage interior. "It was necessary, though, as I don't want anyone to know I'm meeting with you." She turned to the blonde woman. "_Tom Collins_, please." She then looked at Isabel. "Hopefully everything will be finished here soon and I can return home. Have you completed your end of the plan?"

"Yes. It's almost finished." Isabel said. "However, there is one small obsticle that I still need to solve." She took another zip of her drink and faced Beatrycze's worried face. "I will sort it out, Beatrycze, don't worry."

"I'm trusting you." Beatrycze smiled. "Maybe you can handle it better. I have already spent too much time, money and resources on this."

"I promise you, everything will work out fine." Isabel said and finished her drink. She turned to the blonde. "One more _Kir Royale_, please."

"I heard there was a situation at Cameron Lake?"

Beatrycze sighed, not wanted to remember the failed attempt. "Don't remind me. I only had my foot in at the last minute and as hard as I tried to work it out, it didn't." She took a zip of her drink. "Truth to be told, Isabel, it was a disaster and... Well, let's just say you're the one who'll have to make all of this sucessful. It's our last chance or I will have to return home as a failure."

Isabel nodded. "I will be going out of town for a few days, a week at most. I will be working on our project of course, but I also need to keep up a good facade for Queen Consolidated. Especially as my partner is showing less interest in running it by the minute."

"Oliver Queen you mean?" Beatrycze said and Isabel could see her friend's eyes turn darker. "Who do you think was involved with the failure at Cameron Lake? Of course, Misha's idiot assistent is the most to blame. The incompetent girl messed up and everything went down-hill from there." She finished her drink and winked at the blonde to make her another. "I tried talking to Mr Queen, but he refused to hear me out."

Isabel, not realizing before that Oliver had been involved, looked at Beatrycze with big eyes, just as the blonde came with her second drink. "Oliver?" She asked, stunned. "Why was Oliver at Cameron Lake?" She asked. "I didn't realize... Beatrycze, I thought I had made it clear that _I_ would be the one to handle Oliver and Queen Consolidated..."

"Yes, I know, trust me when I say I had no part of including him already. It was Misha who changed the plan at last minute, he never explained fully why. I tried my best to calm Queen down, to win him over but... it was no use. And I couldn't very well let Misha know I've been working together with you, behind his back. That would case great damage and I can't risk him telling the people back home about it."

Isabel understood this was all the details she would get from Beatrycze about the surprising discovery that Oliver had been involved in the situation at Camerona Lake. Isabel had been in Barcelona at the time, and even she knew that something of the worse kind had happened. She couldn't have believed in a million years that Oliver would have something to do with it. Would this now put all her hard work at risk?

Isabel and Beatrycze kept talking and drinking until the late hours of the night. Oliver Queen and his involvement at Cameron Lake wasn't mentioned again, and after a few more drinks, Isabel had forgotten all about her worries.

Oliver had just walked into the lobby at Mater Private, when he saw Diggle.

"Digg!" He said, walking up. "What's going on? Felicity suffers from a TBI now all of a sudden?"

Diggle's face was full of worry and he looked tired. Understandable, since he had been the one guarding Felicity when Oliver had been at the meeting.

"Yes, a TBI. Don't ask me how it only was discovered _now_... Dr Byrne said it's a milder kind, so he and his team moved her to the ICU. The medical induced coma will take place at 6pm, which means..." He looked at the time. "...30 minutes."

Oliver felt like the ground started to shake under him, his legs feeling like jelly. "I don't understand... This makes no sense what so ever." He mumbled. "She's been here for, what, two weeks and she's been unconscious... And only _now_ they discover she has a TBI? _This isn't right_!"

Oliver started to slowly make his way towards the elevator, when Diggle stopped him. "Oliver, you can't go up there, you're not allowed to the ICU."

"I don't care!" Oliver said. "I can't leave her alone, not now...!"

"I get it, I get it. But they still won't let you in there. There's the risk of infection and the fever coming back..." Diggle said, feeling the pain on his friend's face. He paused for a moment. "How about you come back to my palce? Lyla would love to see you and she is making her famous _Pasta Pescatore_ and-"

"Sure, I'll come." Oliver slowly said. Oliver thought about it. As much as he would like to stay with Felicity, he knew he would be no good and once she would be in a coma, she would barely know he was there, so he decided to take Diggle up on his offer.

"Great!" Diggle said. "Oh and about Dr Byrrne, he's up at the ICU prepping Felicity, but I told him to call as soon as he knew more."

"Good, thanks Digg." Oliver said. "Now when I'm thinking about it, I'm actually quite hungry..."

"I knew it!" Diggle winked. "Don't worry about crashing either, Lyla always makes too much food, even if-" He immediatly stopped when realizing he was nearly giving away the secret he and Lyla would tell Oliver together at the dinner.

**Author's note:** _Here's another chapter, don't know what to say _LOL _The next chapter will have Felicity's POV (or how one would describe it, as she will be in a coma) in it and __ma__y__be__ she will wake up. We'll see what happens ;)_


	18. Ep 17 - The only thing that keeps us fro

**Chapter 17**

"**The only thing that keeps us from a place of joy is an illusion, the illusion of fear." **

_- Molly Friedenfeld_

_During her second year at the university, Felicity took a Psychology class in which they, among other things, studied the different experiences coma-patients had experienced while being in a coma. Felicity had been amazed by how out-of-this-world some patients had been dreamed or hallucinated, some were scary and some even crazy. _

_They had been in such dark places, that when they had been showing signs of actually waking up, it had taken a long while until they really did wake up, as they were afraid to do so. The dreams, hallucinations had been so dark and frightening, their worst nightmare, that they had believed it was reality, that this was what they would wake up to._

_One of the many, many articles Felicity had been adviced to read while taking the class, was one where it was discussed how the human brain changed while being unconscious, in a coma; normal one or medical-induced and if while being in this state, could they actually dream? _

"People sometimes report strange memories, dreams, or even visions from the time they spend in a coma. But how much do we know about what they experience or are aware of during that time?

In order to piece that together, we first have to try to understand what it means to be unconscious. After a person suffers serious head trauma, doctors have little time to spare. The brain swells up in response to injury, sometimes pushing against the skull or cutting off oxygen to certain parts, which can cause brain damage or even death.

In some cases, the only response is the drastic step of putting someone into a medically induced coma. Shutting down or limiting brain activity by inducing a coma reduces blood flow and the brain's metabolic rate, which helps reduce swelling. This allows the brain to rest and provides time for it to heal.

Although they share a name, a medically-induced coma is drastically different from a traditional coma caused by trauma. Intentionally putting someone into a coma is like putting them under anesthesia — they become unconscious, but crucially, we know how to wake them up.

There's no binary between unconscious and awake. Just as traditional sleep has various stages, like slow-wave sleep and R.E.M. sleep, there are different brain states that the mind can register while unconscious and different states that the brain enters while waking up.

The brain doesn't just go from "less conscious" to "more conscious,". There are ups and downs along the way.

In a true, or non-induced coma, there's no evidence of fluctuating circadian cycles or changing brain activity. In that case, it's highly unlikely anyone would remember anything or even dream — though if they wake up, which isn't guaranteed, they might enter mental states along the way that allow them to dream.

Since we don't know what steps someone's mind goes through as they wake from a true coma, they might still appear to be in a coma when they are actually waking up, and at some point might become partially aware of their surroundings at that time.

When a doctor puts a patient into a medically induced coma, meanwhile, they are trying to create a mental state that will minimize brain activity, and usually, the patient's consciousness or perception of the world around them. However, a person's brain could spend time in more active states while coming into or out of the induced coma, just like when people go under anesthesia.

In some cases, people receiving ordinary anesthesia may spend time in stages that allow for experiences similar to dreams. In rarer cases, they may not go as far under as they should, and may have memories of something happening around them. While highly uncommon, one or two people out of 1,000 might actually remember what's happening around them during surgery.

More commonly, people remember things that never happened.

It's hard to characterize the different mental experiences that people have while in a coma. Some of them may be dreams, others are hallucinations.

In the comments section of a Scientific American article about medically induced comas, people started to share some of what they remember of the experience. Though it's not possible to verify these reports, they show some of the crazy journeys the mind takes while unconscious or in the process of waking. Many are scary.

The brain can interpret what it experiences in many ways, and people often hold onto whatever explanation makes the most sense or is the most convenient for them. Since we're just beginning to understand the path the mind follows when it goes from unconscious to awake, we don't know exactly why some people end up in states that provide these visions, nightmares, and in rare cases, memories.

In many ways, these are likely the consequences of our brains trying to clarify or codify representations of a barely felt outside world."

_After the course was finished, Felicity had thought more about what she would do, with the little she could, if she ever ended up being unconscious or even being in a coma. She would try to focus on the joyful, positive and light stuff in her life, so that when waking up she wouldn't fight it, like some coma-patients had done. And if she had to suffer through a nightmare, she would have someone to wake her up from it. Someone who was the light in her life, her _real_ life, someone who... well, _loved_ her. This person would bring Felicity back, if she ever ended up in a coma, which she hoped wouldn't happen of course. The problem was, that she didn't have that person. _

_Back in college, she dated a guy called Nolan and even if they dated for a long time, Felicity never gave her all to the relationship. She loved him and all, but she never truly knew if the love she felt was only as a friend or as somone more important. _

_Truth to be told, since her mother had passed away a few years earlier, Felicity had been emotionally drained. Elena had been very ill for quite some time and Felicity had been taking care of her until she passed away. Taking care of your terminally ill mother and then on top of that losing her, had been extremely difficult, especially when you were only 18. It took a long time for Felicity's heart to heal after that and when it once was healed, she didn't open it up to just anyone._

_Nolan knew that about Felicity's past and that was partial to why he stayed with her. In the end though, he couldn't take it anymore and they split up. They stayed friends, though._

_Who did she have _now_ who loved her? No one. She hadn't had time for dating since she joined Oliver and Diggle, she couldn't imagine keeping that of a big secret from someone. There was also the fact that she risked her life every day as being part of the team, why put someone through that, in case something bad happened? _

_And... Then there was the clear truth in it all._

_Felicity didn't want to date. She had already someone special in her life, who she would give her heart completly to if given the chance. The true love of her life. _Oliver Queen_._


	19. Ep 18 - She was struck by the simple tru

**Chapter 18**

"**She was struck by the simple truth that sometimes the most ordinary things could be made extraordinary, simply by doing them with the right people..."**

**- **_Nicholas Sparks_, The Lucky One

Oliver hated to admit it, but he was having fun spending time with Diggle and Lyla. Diggle had been very right, Lyla's _Pasta Pescatore _was indeed delicious and for dessert she had made _Pannacotta _with buckthorn topping.

Lyla didn't ask Oliver about Felicity, which meant Diggle had given her a warning before-hand not to mention her. Again, as much as Oliver wanted to focus every fiber of his being on Felicity, he had to admit that spending time with Diggle and Lyla, Lyla who he hadn't seen in weeks or months even... He could relax for a moment and spend time with his friends. If it had been his mother and Thea, he hadn't been able to relax as they didn't know what really had happened to Felicity and how Oliver was so involved with her abduction.

Oliver also enjoyed seeing Diggle happy, because just like Oliver, Diggle had had his dark moments. He had been at war and on top of that, losing his brother. Lyla had brought the light back to his life and given their history, it was simply given they would end up together _again_. And something had to be going on with the two because:

1) Diggle was extra lovey-dovey towards Lyla

2) He seemed to be keeping an extra eye out for her, not letting her carry anything heavier than glasses

3) Lyla had been drinking nothing but water all evening, she didn't even have coffee with the dessert.

What was going on, that was the big question... He decided to let it be, he knew they would tell him in time. So instead he chose to give grace to Lyla for a delicious dinner.

"Lyla, it was delicious, you've really out-done yourself!" Oliver smiled.

"I'm glad you liked it, Oliver." Lyla smiled back and took a zip of water from her glass. "Oliver... Me and John, we have news." She started. "Actually, it's rather huge news and... I know John has been real eager to tell you..." She looked at Diggle, who nodded and smiled back, while taking her hand. Another sign to Oliver that something was most definatley going on. "Want to tell him?"

"Sure." Diggle smiled and turned to Oliver. "Oliver, Lyla is pregnant. We're having a baby." He gently pressed Lyla's hand.

"That's great news." Oliver smiled. "Congratulations!"

"Thank you, Oliver." Lyla smiled back. "We're really excited. The Gods would know that it has been a roller-coaster if anything for John and me but eventually we found our way back to each other and... Here we are now, on the merge of starting our own little family."

Diggle gave out a little chuckle. "Yes, it's really exciting." He glanced at Oliver. "You realize you'll be the kid's godfather, right?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Oliver smiled. "Truly, I'm happy for you."

He got up to give Lyla a peek on the cheek and Diggle a solid hug. In his mind, Oliver had wanted Felicity to be here with them, she would've been over-welmed with joy. Oliver met Diggle's gaze, who obviously could tell that he was thinking about Felicity as he simply nodded, his eyes sparkling with happiness.

Back at Mater Private Hospital. Dr Byrne had Felicity placed in the ICU and had made sure everything was set for the medical induced coma. His team has done all the needed test in beforehand, so that there would be no complications while Felicity was in a comatose state. After the tests had come back looking allright, Felicity's vitals were carefully checked and then Dr Byrne carefully inserted the barbiturate drug in a slow and steady flow. Keeping check on Felicity's vitals, it was soon noticable that she was indeed in a comatose state of mind. Dr Byrne turned to Vilma, one of the nurses,

"Check on her every hour, I will come by at midnight or so."

"Yes, Dr Byrne." Vilma nodded and looked at Felicity. "What horrible things she must have been through... Poor thing." She looked at Dr Byrne. "That's why she's not waking up, is it? She's been faced with a trauma so great that she's afraid to let go of whatever reality she's in now and face _our _reality. What do you think will happen to the young man who's been watching over her if she doesn't wake up?" She turned to watch Felicity again. "He obviously loves her, it's written all over his face. His heart will break if she doesn't wake up."

"It may be one of the reasons, yes. No one can truly say how the human mind works in a comatose state of mind." Dr Byrne said. "Now, I'll head downstairs for the nightly round." He started to walk away, before he remembered something and turned to Vilma again. "Oh and Vilma? You know the situation, so make sure no one unauthorized get in here." He looked at the time. "Good night, Vilma."

Vilma nodded. "Of course. Good night, Dr Byrne."

_Felicity's eyes shot wide open and she was faced with a bright light that hurt her eyes. She put her hand up as protection and turned her head. _

_After a moment, the light disappeared and she took her hand down, looking around. She had no idea where she was, she didn't see any sign of anything that could give her an idea of exactly where she was. Truth to be told, everything was grey, foggy and kind of blurry._

_It was damp and cold, and she had to brush her hands against each other to get some warmth into her body. She looked down and saw to her surprise that she was dressed in a basic outfit of jeans and a knitted jersey, on her feet were Panda ballerina shoes. _

_This didn't however clear anything up for Felicity, if anything she got only more confused. When had she ever wore something this casual, her wardrobe consisted mainly of skirts, shirts and dresses + high heels._

_Felicity thought for a while, not coming up with a solution. She couldn't quite remember what had happened before she woke up and that was worrying. She closed her eyes for a short moment to focus, trying to remember – but nothing._

_Only, when she opened her eyes, she wasn't in the grey area anymore. She was sitting on a blanket, and when looking around, she saw it was a park. The sun was shining and it was warm. She didn't recognize the park, but it was beautiful with its large oak trees, lakes with ducks and swans, green grass and people scattered all over. _

_All of sudden, she heard a swoosh kind of sound and she could feel a pair of hands on her shoulders, a voice – Oliver's voice - saying,_

"_Felicity..." Felicity's heart skipped a beat and she turned around, meeting Oliver's face._

"_Hi..." She whispered, feeling relief, as she now knew she was safe. She closed her eyes, knowing that everything was allright now. But then she opened her eyes..._

_Only to meet the face of Matt, her father. He didn't say anything but the look on his face... Felicity flinched and turned around, wanting to get up and run away, but her whole body froze. She tried to talk, but nothing came out. Matt looked at her with a look on his face that scared her. Felicity looked back at him, fear mixed with anger rising within her, as she closed her eyes, shaking her head. _

_Before she knew it, Felicity was running. It was cold again and she couldn't shake the feeling she was being chased, something or someone had to be chasing her. As she was running, she couldn't make it out where she was, all she could see was grey, fog and blur. _

_All of a sudden, she felt how something cold grabbed her and held her so that she couldn't keep running. Felicity was completly thrown of guard by it, but she still fought to get rid of whatever it was that was holding her. But without luck._

"_Let go of me!" She screamed. "Let go! Let go of m-!" She was interrupted by an incredible force throwing her backwards. Everything went so fast, everything was spinning. Felicity screamed and soon it felt like she was sucked into oblivion. _

_The next thing she knew, she was collapsing on hard ground. When looking around, she immediatly recognized where she was. It was the conference room at Queen Consolidated. Oliver was standing in front of her, but he didn't seem to notice her. He was looking out the window, a tormented look on his face._

"_Oliver, thank God" She said, looking at him and realizing he didn't see her. "Oliver?"_


	20. Ep 19 - Wherever you are - know I really

**Chapter 19**

"**Wherever you are - know I really love you. Wherever you've been - know I've been there too. Whatever you're doing when you need a friend call me, I'll be there just to listen to you."**

- _Spanish Proverb_

_Felicity couldn't comprehend what was going on. She was standing right in front of Oliver but he didn't see her, it was like she was a ghost. He was standing by the bottom-to-top windows, his hands in the pockets of the suit pants. Felicity followed where he looked and she saw the sun was shining, the sky was clear blue... But below that beautiful sky, was also part of Starling City still in rumbles after the quake. Somehow, that part stood out more and Felicity had to walk around to get a grasp on everything. She looked at Oliver again, watching him. He had no idea she was there, it couldn't be possible but... still it was._

_She closed her eyes, grasping her hands. "What is happening? Why can't you see me?" She opened her eyes again, looking Oliver. She went up to him again, standing right in front of him and almost piercing her eyes into his, like that would make him see her. _

"_Oliver, I'm right _here_, why can't you_ see_ me?"_

_All of a sudden, Oliver was looking right at her and she could see that his eyes were blank and Felicity felt a knot in her stomach when she saw his face. His face looked... in pain, so tormented. He was being very subtle, hiding it but Felicity, who had spent every awaken hour with him for what seemed like an eternity, she knew exactly how to look through that exterior. It broke her heart to see him like this, she hated seeing him upset – but she couldn't do anything. Because she had no idea how or why she had ended up here in the first place. And she had no idea why Oliver looked as hurt and tormented, broken even, as he did._

_It felt like she was dreaming, she had to be dreaming. Why else would she first find herself in a _grey zone_, only to seconds later be in a park with first Oliver and then her father, to be running but never coming anywhere and now she was at Queen Consolidated. Something was going on, there had to be a reason to why – how – what?_

_She turned to face Oliver again, but he was gone. Felicity froze and she panicked. _

_"Oliver?" She asked, looking around. "Oliver!" She might not have been able to interact with Oliver, but atleast she could see him. That had given her a peace of mind, as little as it might have helped in the end and she had stayed calm. _

_But now he was gone and when Felicity looked out the windows again, she saw the skies were pitch plack, threathening, and the rain was pouring down._

_Felicity felt cold all of a sudden and she was on her way away from the windows... When all of a sudden, the windows exploaded and the glass shattered around her. She panicked and run away from the windows, looking in shock as the previous light office now was being surrounded by darkness._

_"_What_ is going on?" She whispered to herself, feeling hopeless when she had no idea how to interpret all that had happened._

_Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a quiet swooshing sound, more glasses shattered and before she could react, Felicity felt herself being dragged by what felt like really strong wind, a hurricane even and then she was falling, falling, falling..._

_All of a sudden she hit something hard and it must've knocked her out, because everything turned black._

Oliver was still at Diggle and Lyla's, when his phone rang. He immediatly recognized the number to come from Private Mater, so he glanced quickly at Diggle and went into the kitchen.

"Hello?"

"Mr Queen, it's Dr Byrne from Private Mater Hospital." Dr Byrne's voice said on the other line. "I'm calling to give you the latest updates on Ms Smoak's condition."

Oliver swallowed hard, not knowing what would come next. He couldn't either read the tone of Dr Byrne's voice, so he didn't know if it was a good or bad thing that Dr Byrne was calling this late.

"Yes, hello, Dr Byrne." He said carefully, trying to mute the emotions in his voice running wild. "How is Felicity, has there been any change or improvements?"

"She's now in the medical induced coma and it's looking good so far, we'll see how it looks in 48 hours. If it's looking as good, or better, as it is now, we'll wake her up. We're also getting the Anemia under control and ms Smoak's vitals are looking good." Dr Byrne said, his voice solid and calm. He was silent for a while. "This is normally against Private Mater's ICU policy but if you'd like to come visit Felicity tomorrow morning, it could be arranged. I know you've been quite worried about Ms Smoak's condition. Around 8 a.m., if it suits you?"

"I would... like that, yes." Oliver said. "I will see you tomorrow morning, Dr Byrne. Thank you for calling."

"Of course. See you tomorrow Mr Queen. Good night." And with that, the phone call ended.

Oliver put down his phone and leant against the kitchen counter. Closing his eyes, he took a couple of deep breaths. Felicity was getting better, her condition was improving and in 48 hours they might wake her up and she would finally be by his side again. This nightmare of him not knowing if she'd make it or not would _finally_ be over.

"Oliver?" Oliver opened his eyes and Diggle was standing in the door way. "Are you okay?"

Oliver nodded lightly, smiled even. "Yes. That was Dr Byrne, he was calling about an update on Felicity... She's slowly improving and they are most likely to wake her up in 48 hours. I'm going to see her tomorrow morning."

"Oh, thank God." Diggle breathed out. "That is great news."

Oliver nodded, not saying anything. Therefor Diggle asked, "Oliver, aren't you happy? Felicity is most likely to wake up, fully recovered and you're _finally _getting your chance to tell her how you _really _feel. Because why torture yourself any longer, when you've obviously accepted the fact that you love her... When you can tell her and-"

"Then what, Diggle?" Oliver said. "I'll tell Felicity I love her and we'll live happily ever after?"

"Exactly." Diggle said, trying to act as Oliver's voice of reason. "Everyone deserves to be happy, Oliver. Even _you_, both as Oliver Queen _and_ the Arrow. Felicity is without a doubt your happy future."

"That's not how... Having a future, a _happy_ future with Felicity isn't in the cards for me and you know it." He sighed. "Felicity was only abducted because of _me_. She was hurt because of _me_. Beatrycze Salomea and Misha Smolak appearently knew that she was working for me, so by taking her... They found my weak point by using Felicity as leverage. Just imagine what would happen if I let myself-"

"That wasn't their only reason." Diggle said. "Smolak is also Felicity's father, he had to have his own agenda with abducting her. It's not your fault, Oliver and we found Felicity. She's safe at the hospital and she will be fine." He gave Oliver a long look. "I know you're afraid of hurting her again, Oliver but... Just imagine how worse you would feel if Felicity wasn't in your life at all. You don't want to lose her, so whatever you do when she wakes up... Do _not_ push her away."

Oliver looked at him, nodding even though he felt hopeless. He hadn't let himself think these thoughts before; that he was the reason Felicity was hurt and that something worse might happen to her if he _really_ let her in his life... Nevertheless, Felicity was his friend and part of his team, he would have to keep her safe from all his enemies and _especially_ from Misha Smolak.

"You're right, Diggle." He said. "Thank you." He looked at the time. "I better head home." He shook Diggle's hand. "Thank you for a nice evening, John."

"My pleasure." Diggle smiled. "Let me know about Felicity as soon as you've been to see her."

"I will." Oliver nodded and went back out to the living room where Lyla was sitting. "Lyla, thank you for a lovely evening. Best _Pasta Pescatore_ I've ever had." He gave her a gental kiss on the cheek. "And again, congratulations on the baby. I'm really happy for you."

"Thank you, Oliver." Lyla said. "We'll have to do this again sometime."

"Absolutly." Diggle agreed. "And maybe by then, Oliver will bring a date with him."

Oliver didn't say anything, he just winked at Diggle. "Thank you for a great evening, you too. Good night."

_Felicity groaned as she opened her eyes, her head pounding heavily from hitting the ground. _

_"You have to be kidding me!" She thought. This was nothing she had been experienced before while dreaming, she had never felt pain or whatever emotion this strong before. "What kind of dream is this?"_

_"That's because you're not dreaming, baby." A voice, a _familiar_ voice said behind her. _

_Because it sounded so familiar, Felicity slowly looked up and she froze when seeing who stood in front of her – her mother, Elena. "Mom?" she whispered._

_"It's me, baby." Elena smiled. "It's so nice to finally be able to talk with you, I've missed you so much."_

_Felicity was unable to speak, she could only stare at her mother. Her mother, who she had been forced to _bury _nine years ago, who had died. How was all of this possible, how was Felicity able to _see_ and _speak_ with her mother?_

_"Mom... What is going on?" Felicity whispered. "How are you... _here_?"_

_"I'm here to help you." Elena said. "I don't have much time, so you need to listen carefully."_

_"Help me? How could you help me, mom? You're _dead_!" Felicity said._

_Elena looked at her. "Felicity, please listen to me. You're experience all of this because you're in a coma, a _medical induced_ coma. That's why I an talk to you, why you were at Queen Consolidated earlier..."_

_"Queen Consolidat-" Felicity said, remembering. "Oh God, Oliver. Mom, what happened to Oliver, is he allright? Why couldn't he see me, talk to me?"_

_"I don't know, baby, I'm not controlling it." Elena said. "All I know is that you have to listen carefully, I can help you get better, to wake up."_

_Felicity looked at her. "How?"_


	21. Ep 20 - How far away the stars seem, and

**Chapter 20**

**"How far away the stars seem, and how far is our first kiss, and ah, how old my heart."**

**- **_William Butler Yeats_

It was the following morning and Oliver had barely slept during the night. Admitting to himself and to Diggle that he was afraid what would happen if he let Felicity in his life, _really _let her in, had been harder on him that he had imagined, therefor the lack of sleep. Anyway, he couldn't take his focus of Felicity, she had to get better first and then he would tackle the other things surrounding him and Felicity.

When he made it down to the dining room, Moira and Thea were already there.

"Oliver, good morning." Moira said.

"Morning, mam." Oliver said, still distraught from worrying about Felicity and not sleeping well. He took a plate and started to put different kinds of fruits, croissants, charcuteries, cheeses on it and then poured a cup of coffee.

"Have you changed your mind about Dublin?" Moira said. "It would look better if you and Isabel came together, since you are both CEOs of the company... _Your_ family's company." She paused to take a zip of her cup of tea. "Also, it would put a lid on the many rumours circling around that-"

"Mam, could we _please_ not talk business at breakfast table?" Thea groaned, giving her mother a look. "Save your bickering until you're at QC, would you?"

"Yes, mam, I agree. Let's not have this discussion here." Oliver said and looked at his mother.

"I'm sorry, Thea, but you have to see past that right now. You might not want anything to do with the family company but..." Moira said and then turned to Oliver. "You, Oliver, have taken on the role as the leader." She paused and gave him a judging look. "Even if your... _priorities_ seem to have shifted lately."

Oliver closed his eyes, not enjoying this bickering this early in the morning. He loved his mother, but her judgemental tone was starting to get the best of her and he knew for a fact that she meant the amount of hours he had spent by Felicity's bed side at Mater Private. He had no idea why she seemed to dispise Felicity so much, the two of them had barely crossed ways... That was a question to be answered for another day, this morning all he wanted was to see Felicity. It had been a few days since he last had seen her and he missed her incredibly already, that it hurt him.

He turned to Thea. "Speedy, how's Roy doing?"

Thea looked up, almost shocked that her brother showed any interest what so ever in her love life. Not that it was something she wished for him to do...

"Roy... He's... fine, I guess." She said slowly. "We're... We're really happy."

"Good to hear." Oliver smiled and took a bite of a croissant. "You should invite him over more often, I'd like to get to know him better."

By the way Thea was looking at him, he understood she wasn't comfortable with it but finally, she nodded and smiled. "I'm sure he'd like that."

The three of them finished the rest of their breakfast in silence. Thea was the first to get up and leave, she had to prepare some things for a private event hosted at Verdant and Moira was next to follow. She looked at Oliver, gave him a kiss on the cheek and told him to have a good day.

A moment later, Diggle walked in. He looked concerned, which immediatly alarmed Oliver.

"Digg, what's wrong?" Diggle looked at him and Oliver could see it was something of the more serious kind. "_Diggle_!"

Diggle put his hands off, a gesture to calm Oliver down. "When Felicity went missing and we found out her connection to Smolak, I pinged every source I could think of where he had been involved. It's the trace we've been following ever since."

"Yeah, but it's been a dead end..." Oliver said, before he realized what Diggle was saying. "The trace caught up with Smolak again, you found him. Where is he?"

"He's here, in Starling City. I don't know where exactly but I'm working on it." Diggle said. "I reached out to detective Lance and told him to keep his eyes open, that Smolak is incredibly dangerous."

Oliver nodded. This was not good news _at all_. If Smolak was back in Starling, it meant that he could find out where Felicity was and worst case scenario... He closed his eyes, not letting himself think like that. He turned his attention to Diggle. "What about Salomea, have you found her?"

Diggle shook his head. "No. She has been harder to track but I'm looking into other ways of finding her. I did mention her name to detective Lance, he said he would do everything he could."

"Okay, allright..." Oliver said. "Keep checking the track on Smolak, I will talk with detective Lance later and hear what he's found."

"Right." Diggle said and looked at the time. "Now, we better get going if you want to make it to your meeting." He said and a hidden smiled appeared on his lips.

Oliver nodded and the two of them left the Queen mansion for Mater Private.

_Felicity's eyes had started to hurt, much likely from the luminate light that was swirling around her mother._

_"Mom, why did you tell me that you can help me to wake up? I'm in a medical-induced coma, they only way I can wake up is when the doctors decide to." She said._

_"Yes, but even then there could be something holding you back." Elena said. "That was what I meant, Felicity. You need to let go of any fear you might have and then you will wake up."_

_"Fears I might have?" Felicity repeated. "Of course I have fears - I was taken by some lunatic man who just happens to also be my absent father. I was drugged and when I managed to escape, I still was close to dying! And considering I've been unconscious for several weeks and now in a medical-induced coma, I'm _still _not safe!"_

_"Felicity, stop it!" Elena said. "We're running out of time, let me explain.." She paused, like she tried finding the words. "You don't have to be afraid anymore, you will be safe when you wake up. I made arrangements for you, to keep you safe-"_

_Felicity stared at her. "I'm sorry, mom, but _how the hell_ have you been able to make arrangements for me when you've been _dead_ for the past nine years!" She shouted._

_Elena gave her a look and Felicity immediately mumbled "Sorry", wheras Elena continued:_

_"I started preparing myself long before I got sick, even before your father left us. And when I did get sick, knowing I would leave you behind... I made _completly sure_ that you would be kept safe and that you would stay out of harms way... Arrangements to secure your safety." She paused, looking away for a moment. Felicity saw her chance to question what Elena just had said:_

_"What do you mean you made arrangements to secure my safety?"_

_Elena looked at her and only shook her head. Then she continued talking:_

_"I knew Matt had a troubled soul and since he moved to Poland he got darker... but never could I've imagined he'd do something like... Kidnap his own daughter, risk your life... He won't harm you again, baby, I promise. However, if he would be so foolish to try, I'm sure Oliver Queen will protect you." Elena winked. "Or should I say the _Arrow_?"_

Oliver was feeling anxious, where he stood in the lobby at Mater Private. Soon he saw Dr Byrne came walking towards him.

"Mr Queen, good morning. We'll head straight up to the ICU so you can see Felicity."

"Good morning, Dr Byrne." Oliver greeted. "Has there been any change or improvements in Felicity's condition?"

"Her heart rate got a bit high there for a moment during the night, but it was nothing serious - everything is looking good. The Anemia is finally under controll, we're still keeping a close eye on it." Dr Byrne said as they stepped into the elevator. "I have to warn you, Mr Queen, you might be frightened by the look of Felicity, she may look different but I assure you... That's only because of the wires and such." Oliver looked at him and nodded.

At the same time, the elevator arrived at ICU and the doors opened. Dr Byrne let Oliver walk out first and then showed him to the room where Felicity was. They stopped outside the door.

"I will let you have a moment." Dr Byrne said. "Feel free to talk to her, she may very well hear you. She may also be responsive to touch. I will come back later."

"Thank you, Dr Byrne." Oliver said and shook his hand and as Dr Byrne walked away, Oliver took a deep breath, opened the door to Felicity's room and walked in.

Wires, going in and out of Felicity's small and frail body, that was all Oliver saw at first. The only sound he could make out was the slow, steady '_Beep... Beep... Beep'_s coming from the heart monitor – the only sign of life.

He slowly walked up to the foot of the hospital bed, watching her carefully. Then he noticed how actual small and frail Felicity looked, lying there unconscious, with a blanket over her. Oliver took a deep breath, swallowed and continued to the chair placed beside the top of the bed. He sat down and watched Felicity even more closely.

He took another deep breath and started talking to Felicity, not knowing if she could hear him.

"Hi Felicity... It's me, Oliver." Her face looked so pale and her fragility made Oliver almost afraid to touch her, but her lifelessness made him more afraid not to. "I'm breaking a ton of hospital policy rules right now, so I shouldn't be here really, but..." After some more hesitation, he carefully took her hand, which was cold, between his. "Felicity, I've been so worried about you. _I had to see you_."

_Felicity flinched, even if only a tiny bit that it was barely noticable, and Elena gave out a small laugh. "Baby, it's fine. It's not like I will tell anyone. Besides... I don't care about the Arrow, what matters to me is how _Oliver Queen_ treats you and what you mean to each other." She looked carefully at Felicity, whose eyes now had fallen to the ground. _

_"You love him. I would guess he loves you too and _that_ is the reason to why you can let go of all your fears, Felicity." Elena said and took Felicity's hand. "Oliver will protect you – _with his life_ - from anyone who could hurt you and more important... The _love_ you feel for him will be the main reason to why you can wake up. When it's time."_

_Felicity couldn't comprehend what her mother was saying. She loved Oliver, Oliver loved her and knowing that would make Felicity safe once she woke up from the coma and returned to... _the real world_. _

_She looked at Elena. "Mom, it's... it's not that easy." She whispered, surprised to hear the pain in her voice. "Oliver is... We're... He couldn't..." She was interrupted when Elena pressed her hand. "Mom?"_

_"Baby, it's time for me to go. Just remember what I told you. Let go of the fears you have. Let the love you feel for Oliver fully into your heart and once you do... you will wake up." Elena smiled, touched her face and kissed her cheek. "I'm so proud of the woman you've become, Felicity. I love you so much. Goodbye."_

_Felicity, with tears in her eyes, nodded and wrapped her arms around her mother. "I love you, mom. Goodbye."_

_Then there was a bright light and Felicity was alone, surrounded by nothing but darkness._

Oliver's heart was beating surprisingly fast, as he sat by Felicity's bed, watching her. He kept talking to her, hoping that some part of her could hear his voice or feel him holding her hand, just so that she would know that he was there.

"You have no idea how..." He started, having a hard time to find the words.

Looking at Felicity, it became more and more clear to Oliver that he indeed cared for her more than he had originally wanted to admit to himself. It might have taken Oliver a while, but he had come to realize it now. How could he not? Felicity was an amazing young woman, she was smart, charming, kind, caring and witty – even with her occasional sentence fragments – and not to mention beautiful, extremely beautiful. Also, the fact that the two of them shared a special kind of bond, chemistry even, was clear.

"It's been a nightmare for me during these past weeks... Not knowing if you would get better or worse."

He couldn't help the other kinds of thougths circling in his mind. What would happen to Felicity if he truly let her in, admitted to both himself and to her that he loved her? Could they have a normal life, a future together – even with Oliver being the Arrow?

"Felicity, I just want you to get better, that's all I need." His hand moved to her face, carefully stroaking her cheek.

Because being the Arrow, always comes with a risk – which Oliver was well aware of. He was afraid that including Felicity in his life _for real_, would only enlarge the risk for Felicity. If his enemies found out about Felicity and what she meant to Oliver – that he _loved _her, they could use her as leverage against Oliver as himself or as the Arrow. Because Felicity would be Oliver's _weak point_. The Count had abducted her and it was a close call, until Oliver put three arrows in him. Misha Smolak had even figured out what Felicity and Oliver meant to each other and that was why he abducted her – _to get to Oliver_. God knew what else could happen?

Therefor, she could get hurt... or worse. And Oliver wouldn't let that happen again, he _couldn't_. He remembered what it felt like when he had found her in the cave, when Oliver thought he'd lost her. The angst and despair, complete heart-ache... No, Oliver would rather die himself than let something happen to Felicity.

But then he remembered what Diggle had told him, _Everyone deserves to be happy, Oliver. Even you, both as Oliver Queen and the Arrow. Felicity is without a doubt your happy future. Just imagine how much worse you would feel if Felicity wasn't in your life at all. _Diggle had been right. Oliver would be so much unhappier if he hadn't met Felicity, he might still be the stone-cold killer he had been when first returning from the island. She had brought out the light in him and if he lost her again, he would lose the light.

"I won't lose you, Felicity..." Oliver said, his voice cracking as he tried to fight the tears that were appearing from nowhere. "I _can't_ lose you." He looked at her carefully, still with his hand on her face. Then he slowly got up, leaning over Felicity, letting his lips slowly brush against hers.


	22. Ep 21 - And in that moment, I swear we w

**Chapter 21**

"**And in that moment, I swear we were infinite." **

- _Stephen Chbosky_, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Oliver let his lips linger at Felicity's for a moment longer, until he finally let go. He still had his eyes closed and once he opened them again, he had to blink a few extra times for the tears. It was obvious to him now that seeing Felicity had affected him more than he first had imagined. He had admitted some great things to himself – and to Felicity but who knew if she heard him – so he had the right to feel like this. It still surprised him, as he hadn't let him _feel_ for a very long time.

He noticed his hand was still on Felicity's face. He let his thumb run over her pale cheek before letting go and taking her hand instead.

There was a light knock on the door, and Oliver turned around, only to meet a young nurse.

"Good morning, Mr Queen." She said, appearently knowing who he was. "I'm Vilma, one of the nurses who've been caring for Ms Smoak. I'll only check her vitals and such real quick, I'll be out before you know it. In a flash."

Oliver looked at her, quite stunned. Vilma noticed this and smiled gently, before she hurried up to Felicity's bedside, took out the form and went throught it, looked at the time and then signed it. Still having the form in hand, she went up to Felicity and looked at the many machines, checking the different vitals and writing them in the form.

"Is everything allright?" Oliver asked.

"Yes, everything seems to be in order." Vilma smiled. "She's a real fighter this one. You can consider yourself one very lucky man to have her in your life." She then looked at Felicity for a brief moment, again feeling sad over the tragic fate that had taken upon this girl. Then she glanced at Oliver, noticing that his eyes were locked at Felicity, never once did he look away. His hand was grasping hers and the expression on his face told Vilma that he was in great pain. She felt for him and she needed to give him hope.

"She will wake up, Mr Queen." She said and smiled lightly. "Dr Byrne will bring her out of the coma tomorrow and she will wake up. She has nothing to fear now, with you by her side."

"You don't know that." Oliver whispered. "If it wasn't for me, she wouldn't be..." He stopped and looked at Vilma again. "Thank you for taking care of Felicity."

Vilma smiled and nodded. "It's my pleasure, Mr Queen. Have a good day." And with that she walked out.

Oliver looked at the time, it was nearly 8.30am. He had promised his mother to come by the office at 9am, so he had to leave soon. He didn't want to, he wanted to stay by Felicity's side until the second she woke up. However... he couldn't do that.

"Felicity... I have to go now. I will come back, then I will stay longer." He paused, feeling the aching in his heart of having to leave again. But, with any luck and if Dr Byrne was right, Felicity would be awoken from the coma tomorrow and hopefully, she would wake up. When she did, Oliver would make sure she never left his sight again and he would also make sure she knew how much she meant to him.

Oliver took a deep breath and took out his phone. He shouldn't be using it, since this was the ICU but he had realized something and it had to be done. He called Diggle.

"Digg. I need you to get me the exact location of Smolak. Find him and make sure he stays put. _Whatever you have to do_. I'll meet up with you later." And then he, without letting Diggle speak, Oliver hung up.

He let his finger run over her face and he leaned in to brush his lips against her lips once more.

"I promise you, I will come back."

Another deep breath and he stood up from the chair. He looked at Felicity for a long time, like he was memorizing her face, every inch of her body and then he walked out the room. He didn't look back because if he did, he might change his mind about what he was going to do next. He was going to make sure Misha Smolak pay in full for what he had done to Felicity – _whatever the cost_. Smolak had risked her life, put it in danger and she had nearly died. Yes, he was Felicity's father and Felicity herself might not want Oliver to do this but he had to. He couldn't live with himself, knowing that Smolak was out there, able to hurt Felicity again.

However. Neither Oliver or The Arrow, even with the help of Diggle, would be able to contain Smolak in the foundry or at Iron Heights. He had to be taken somewhere completly different, where he wouldn't be able to hurt _anyone_ ever again. Oliver knew the exact place that would be able to contain Smolak without the risk of him getting out, but he was also very reluctant to taking that step. But in this case, there was no choice to make, as Oliver knew that if Smolak would to be free, there would always exist a risk that he would come after Felicity again and that wasn't what Oliver wanted.

There was also the question about Beatrycze Salomea, she had been involved somehow but Oliver hadn't got any proof (yet) and then there was the subtle treath she had made towards _Queen Consolidated_; unless Oliver agreed on discussing a possible agreement between Salomea's company and _Queen Consolidated_, Salomea would take it a step further and go after Moira or Thea. Maybe Oliver would find out more once he could focus on that, now he first and foremost make sure Smolak was captured and of course, being there for Felicity.

He took out the phone again and dialed a number he had never thought he would dial again. After a few rings, there was a clicking sound.

"It's Oliver. We need to talk. It's important and urgent. Meet me at Verdant. Tonight."

With that, he hung up and found his way out of Mater Private.


	23. Ep 22 - My love for you will outlast thi

Ep TwentyTwo

10

**My love for you will outlast this beach, this ocean, this planet. When judgement comes and Heaven finally falls, I will take you back with me.**

- _Scarlet Blackwell_, I Am Fallen

Oliver barely made it it to the QC office, before Isabel started growling at him again.

"It's astonishing how big of a hypocrite you are!" She said, "Remember when we first met and I was only hours from owning this company fully… and you said you would do anything to stop me? As annoying as you were, as I still wanted to company for my own and not to be partners, I liked the _fire_ you had. I was surprised that you had it in you, considering your history, but I still liked it." She looked at him, sighing. "Where has that fire gone now? Where to have your loyalty shifted, because you're barely at the office anymore, I have to beg your mother to help me and I can_not_ stand that woman…"

"Isabel…" Oliver started, "I want to run this company but due to recent events… Someone I care deeply for is in the hospital, it's very serious and…"

"Yes, yes I know all about that, it's the only thing people are talking about here. You constantly being at some hospital, watching over some girl." Isabel groaned. "My _point_, quite frankly, is that you need to get your head back in the game. I'm leaving for Dublin in three days and you will be on that jet plane with me, even if I have to handcuff you to me."

Oliver sighed. He had thought that he being honest about why he hadn't been completely dedicated to the company would make Isabel understand but clearly it didn't. She was determined that he would come with her to Dublin and while as he understood why his presence was needed, he couldn't leave Starling to fly across the Atlantic. He wasn't willing to take that risk when he knew Felicity would be awoken from the coma and she could wake up any day. What if she woke up while he was in Dublin, what if something happened to her, what if…?

He closed his eyes for a second and took a deep breath. It was clear that he couldn't argue with Isabel but maybe he could make a compromise.

"Isabel, I will come to Dublin but I need to be sure that my friend is safe at the hospital and… She's in a coma, she might wake up sometime in the next few days and…" Oliver started. "Would it be acceptable for you if I came to Dublin a day after you, depending on-"

"_Out of the question._ How will I know you're not just saying this as an excuse to get out?" Isabel said. "I'm sorry Oliver, but your friend will have to make it without your daily visits." She looked at him, seeing by the look on his face that he wasn't pleased with her but she could see that he had given in. "The jet leaves at 9 a.m. on Sunday morning, make sure to be there in time. The charity gala is on Wednesday and before then we'll attend meetings with the board at the QC office in Dublin and meet with associates for dinner on Thursday. We leave for Starling on Thursday evening at 11 p.m. I will give you the full weekly itinerary on Sunday."

Oliver only nodded, as he gritted his teeth in silence. He didn't have time for this right now. Felicity was in the hospital, Smolak was still free – but that would change in a few hours hopefully and as talented as Diggle was, and as much as he trusted him, Oliver didn't want to leave him taking care of the _Arrow_'s business.

"Do we have an agreement?" Isabel said.

Oliver looked at her, his face showing no emotion whatsoever. "Yes. Of course we do." He nodded and looked at the time. "Excuse me, I have some business to see to. I'll be in my office if you need me."

Isabel nodded, a small smile spreading over her lips. "Of course. Glad to see you're getting back in your true role." She turned around and her heels clinked against the marble floor as she walked away to the elevator's to go to her office on the floor above.

Oliver simply nodded and walked to his office. Once he sat at his desk and he saw Isabel was gone, he called Diggle.

"Oliver." Diggle answered almost immediately.

"Hey. Where are you?" Oliver asked.

"I'm looking into Smolak's location." Diggle sighed and Oliver could hear him tapping on the keyboard. "It's a hard one, let me tell you that, I don't know if I can find him."

"All right. I will try to work something out but…" Oliver started. "I have to be at the office all day, don't know when I will be able to get out…"

He didn't yet want to tell Diggle he had to leave Starling for Dublin in a few days, that was more a _face to face_ thing. Not that Diggle would completely protest, he knew that it was important for Oliver's role as CEO of _Queen Consolidated_ to keep up an appearance and he would look after Felicity if needed…

The thing he could protest about, quite loudly as it was Diggle after all, was that Oliver had to _leave_ Starling and _leave_ his role as the _Arrow_. That had always been Oliver's role, Diggle had always been his partner – but without playing the bigger role. With Oliver leaving, Diggle would have to step up and Oliver had no idea how he would react to that. Especially since he was going to be a father and he might not want to risk his life – or at least getting hurt - in the same way Oliver was willing to.

"Don't worry about it, Oliver. I will do my best. I will contact detective Lance again and see if he can help out." Diggle said.

"Sounds good." Oliver said.

"Now, tell me, how was Felicity doing?" Diggle asked.

Oliver was silent for a while, thinking about Felicity lying in that hospital bed with all those wires coming out of her. "She's stable for now. Dr Byrne told me that her heart rate had gone up during the night but it had stabilized to normal after a while… The anemia was also under control. A nurse I talked to, told me they might wake her up from the coma tomorrow, as her condition has been improving for the past 24 hours…" He paused as he could hear his voice was about to crack, as he remembered how worried he had been, sitting by her bedside.

"That's good. I'm glad she's improving." Diggle said. "I told you man, she will get better. If they wake her up tomorrow, will you be allowed in there?"

"I don't know." Oliver said. "Me seeing her this morning, it may have been a one-time thing. I'd have to discuss it with Dr Byrne."

"All right, all right." Diggle said. "Well, I better get back to searching for Smolak. I will call you if I find something."

"Good. Do that." Oliver said and then he hung up. He looked out the window and took a deep breath. Another deep breath and he turned to a large pile of documents that Isabel had asked him for days already to look over, some needed to be signed.

Isabel couldn't stop smiling as she sat by her desk, finishing up the last details on the itinerary for the Dublin trip. She couldn't believe that she had finally got Oliver to come with her, she had almost doubted herself to being able to convince him so when he had agreed to it, she had barely been able to believe her own ears. Once she had finished the itinerary, she sent an e-mail:

"_Plan in motion. Queen on board. Await instructions._"

"How did I know I would find you tapping along on your computer?" She heard a male voice and she raised her head, followed by a surprised look on her face.

"What are you doing here?" She asked and immediately got up from her desk, as the man walked up to her. "I told you that we couldn't be seen…" She was interrupted as the man pressed his lips against her, pulling her close, making her gasp of surprise.

"And I told you, I don't care what you say." He mumbled in her ear, grinning as Isabel let out a small moan as he lifted her skirt up, letting his hands slowly run up and down her inner thighs. "I don't answer to you." He let out a small laugh. "It's more the other way around, wouldn't you say?"

"This is wrong…" Isabel moaned, as his lips went from her lips down her neck to her collarbone. "We should stop… You need to…" As she could feel his hand on top of her lace panties, slowly pulling them down, she let out a gasp, "_Stop_."

"Now, why would I do that?" He asked and grinned. "We're having fun, aren't we?"

He let his fingers circle around for a bit longer on her thighs, smiling as he could see Isabel unwillingly relaxing to his touch. Then he pushed her against the desk, as he at the same removed his hand so he could fully lift up her skirt and pressed himself between her legs. Isabel tried to push him away but he pinned her hands down against the desk and forced her legs around his waist.

"Stop resisting, ms Rochev…" He whispered in her ear and as Isabel finally gave in, he ripped her panties apart and he sank into her with a quick thrust.

Moments later he _once again_ had her wrapped around his little finger, making her moan his name, begging him for more as he ripped off her shirt. Isabel, on the other hand, cursed in her mind for _once again_ giving in to this man so easily.

Fifteen minutes later, Isabel was left panting while as he, with a smirk on his face, straightened his suit and touched her cheek – until she reacted and got rid of his hand.

"This changes _nothing_." She said and angrily pulled her shirt back on. "Don't come here ever again. Don't contact me, don't call… Don't do _anything _unless **I** am the one contacting **you**." She finished the final button and gave him one final hard look. "Get the hell out of my office or I will call security."

"You keep making these treats, _Raina_…" He gave out a small laugh, putting his hands up in defense, as he could see he was pushing Isabel's buttons by calling her by that name. "But at the end of the day, you're as willing to give yourself to me as you were the night you became _mine_." He enclosed on her and grinned more. "Besides… I already told you that I'm not answering to _you_, _you_ are answering to _me_." He then placed a kiss on her cheek and walked out of the office, leaving Isabel fuming.

It was the end of the working day and Oliver was on his way to Verdant, where Diggle was waiting with – hopefully – an update on Smolak's location or if Oliver's meeting at Verdant later the same evening would be giving result. It was their last chance on finding Smolak before Oliver was forced to go to Dublin was, giving Smolak a chance to get out of Starling and disappear from their radar. That was why Oliver had all his hopes on the meeting, as reluctant he was to meeting the one person he had sworn never to see again. He had warned Diggle about the coming meeting, just so he would know what would happen.

When arriving at Verdant, Oliver immediately went to find Diggle. The night was still young but the club was already packed with people. Oliver spotted Thea and Roy standing at the bar, and he couldn't help smiling. He had been reluctant to letting Thea take the majority of the responsibility for the club, but he had the company to focus on and Roy had also turned out to be a good help.

"Oliver." Oliver turned around to stay face to face with Diggle. "I talked with Lance and he was willing to put out an unofficial search for Smolak. He wanted to know why we were so eager to find him, so I told him that he took Felicity and that we suspect he has something to do with other suspicious activities. I didn't tell him that Smolak is her father." He paused and looked around. "He was in the second I told him that Smolak was the one putting Felicity in the hospital."

Oliver nodded, happy to learn that detective Lance still was on their side, despite their differences in the past. "Good." He looked at the time. "You go downstairs and keep tracking Smolak, I will wait here."

"All right. Let me know if you need me." Diggle gave him a meaning look.

Oliver nodded again and with that, Diggle walked away. At the same time, Oliver's phone rang and when he picked it up, he saw it was from Mater Private, assuming it was Dr Byrne.

"Hello, Dr Byrne?"

"Mr Queen, good evening." Dr Byrne greeted him. "I'm calling you to give an update on Ms Smoak's condition. She's been showing a positive curve all day so we'll go ahead and wake her up in a few hours. Now, it's a quite critical state during the procedure and the hours after so we'll keep her closely under watch. You can of course come and see her, but not until noon tomorrow."

Oliver took a breath, not knowing what to say. Felicity was about to wake up in a few hours, he would see her tomorrow and… Who knew what would happen?

"Mr Queen? Are you still with me?" Dr Byrne asked.

"Yes, I'm here…" Oliver said slowly. "I will of course come and see Felicity tomorrow, I will come during my lunch hour. Thank you so much for taking care of Felicity, Dr Byrne, I…" Oliver had to pause as his voice was about to crack. "Are you sure Felicity will be fine, recover fully?"

"Yes, I'm quite certain she will make full recovery. We'll do everything to make sure she's completely recovered." Dr Byrne said.

"Thank you." Oliver said and the call ended.

This was good news, _positive news_, Oliver knew that but he still felt shaky and he decided to be completely focused on the coming meeting. He looked at the time, any minute now. He decided that he needed a drink and walked up to the bar. Thea was standing behind it, serving drinks while tapping her fingers to the beat of the music.

"Ollie!" She smiled, then noticing her brother's tortured face expression. "Wow, what happened to you? Rough day at the office?" Oliver didn't say anything, just gave her a look. "_Fine_, I won't snoop. What can I get you?"

"Scotch, neat." Oliver said.

"Coming right up." Thea smiled and before Oliver knew it, he had his drink in front of him. He looked at Thea and gave her a nod as thank you, whereas Thea smiled back and then left him to his own while serving other customers.

Oliver had barely even touched his drink before the glass empty and he signaled to the other bartender standing behind the bar, to give him another one.

He had his reasons to be drinking that was for sure.

First, he was meeting somewhat of an old nemesis, who he had sworn to never get involved with again, because he could just the same be making deals with the Devil…

Second, Oliver was really stressed about the way Isabel pushed him to be part of the company. He knew it was something he had to do for his family, _Queen Consolidated_ was his family's company and it was his, to put it dramatically, his destiny to take over. Nevertheless, he hadn't thought it would take such a great toll on him; being both Oliver Queen _CEO_ and _The Arrow_.

Second, and also the most important thing, Felicity would by this time tomorrow be awake – hopefully – and Oliver would finally be able to tell her how he really feels _face to face_. He didn't have to tell her he loved her immediately, even he understood that it would be too much for Felicity to hear just moments after waking up from a several long week coma. More importantly, making sure Felicity still would be kept safe and maybe she knew more about why Smolak had taken her. Also, Oliver was eager to know why she hadn't told him anything about her father.

All of a sudden, he felt a light tap on his shoulder and a female voice saying, "Hello Oliver."

Oliver tensed up immediately and turned around. There in front of him, stood a young woman – no older than Oliver – dressed in black and ice blonde hair. She smiled at him, but her eyes showed no compassion.

"Hello Lachlan." Oliver said with a stiff voice.

"It's been a long time. I'm surprised you called. Considering how you last time nearly killed me." She sat down on the stool next to Oliver and smirked. "What can I do for you?"

A longer update this time around. I got in a flow, kind of, and this is what I ended up with. **Enjoy! (:**

_PS! _Oh Em Gee & all that is holy… The Arrow mid-season finale… Are you alive? I'm not… Such a painful ending, like… No, this will take me a _long_ time to recover from.

**There was no choice to make**


	24. Ep 23 - The world is changed because you

Ep TwentyThree

10

**The world is changed because you are made of ivory and gold. The curves of your lips rewrite history**

- _Oscar Wilde_, The Picture of Dorian Gray

Oliver looked at Lachlan and as much as he would like to get all of this over with so that he wouldn't have to see her longer than usual, he decided to be polite and offer her a drink – before discussing the reason why he had called her.

"Would you like to have a drink?" He asked her and the surprise on her face, even if she tried her best to hide it, was noticeable.

"Yes, actually…" She started and Oliver turned to the bartender, nodded and made a hand gesture. A few moments later an _on the rocks_ glass filled with Scotch and ice was placed in front of Lachlan. "Thank you."

"My pleasure." Oliver said numbly. "There's a reason to why I called you… I need your help finding someone and-"

"Misha Smolak and Beatrycze Salomea." Lachlan said. Oliver looked at her in surprise and she let out a small laugh. "Don't look so surprised Oliver! You must've known I've been looking out for you, even if only from a far distance. Also, my organization has been keeping a close eye on Salomea's movements for a long time and when Smolak, her right hand in the company in Poland, came to Starling City we put out an extra alert on them both." Lachlan paused and took another zip of the Scotch. "My men had been watching them for weeks already, when all of a sudden Smolak disappears and the next thing I know, I hear he's taken some girl to Cameron Lake and you were the one who saved her."

"Wait…" Oliver said. "What do you mean your men had been watching Smolak _for weeks_? How long was he in Starling?"

"He and his team had a full-on operation base at the top floor on the Fairmont Hotel. We don't know exactly what they were doing, it might have to do with the company he's working for, Salomea's company but…" She paused and watched Oliver closely. "I have a feeling that it was no coincidence that he disappeared during the same night of the charity gala."

Oliver couldn't believe this. Smolak had been in town for several weeks before he took Felicity, he must've known she was living and working here, he must've known… Then the worst emotions of guilt rushed over him like a wave; had Smolak only found out that Felicity was in Starling because Oliver brought her as his date to the charity gala? Had she been kept safe if he hadn't insisted on bringing her?

"I can see you're not telling me something." Lachlan said, being able to read Oliver's face expression. "You know why Smolak disappeared… You may even know who the girl was, the girl he took…" Oliver gave her a look, whereas Lachlan nodded. "I see. Who is she?"

"Her name is… Felicity Smoak. Felicity is… She's my partner." Oliver said and he tried his best to hide the pain from realizing that he might have been the reason why Felicity got abducted by Smolak.

He couldn't hide it from Lachlan though; the second he said Felicity's name and his voice trembled, Lachlan knew that Felicity was more important that Oliver led on. She knew this, because the last time his voice had trembled like that, it had been another's name he'd spoken.

"Misha Smolak, or Matt Forwood as he used to be called, is her father.

"Felicity Smoak is… _His daughter_?" Lachlan asked. "No, that's… that can't be. Misha Smolak is Polish, he's born in Gdansk… He has a wife, Rebekah and five children, Mateusz, Amelia, Julia, Dawid and Jakub but there has been no mention of a Felicity Smoak or Matt Forwood."

"Lachlan, I'm telling you, Misha Smolak is his new identity. I have no idea when he went to Poland or why he changed his name… He_ is_ Felicity's father, it was clear once we researched it after Felicity was missing." Oliver said. "We... myself and John Diggle, my partner, have been tracking Smolak but the trace has now gone cold. The same with Salomea, we have no way of tracking them."

Lachlan nodded. "That's why you called me, I reckon."

"Yes. Smolak is dangerous. He is the reason that Felicity nearly _died_ while running away up in Cameron Lake, and he's the reason she now is _fighting_ for her life in the hospital." Oliver said and again his voice trembled by the mention of Felicity. "I know we've had our differences in the past and that we didn't exactly part as friends when we last saw each other but… Lachlan, I'm _desperate_." He looked at Lachlan. "I need your help to find him. _Please_."

Lachlan looked down on her hands, then took her drink and swiped it clean. Then she looked up again. "If you require my help, I'll be at your service." She said and nodded. "However… You know how this works. I do something for _you_…"

"I do something for you in return." Oliver added and tried his best not to grid his teeth. "What would you have me do?"

"Oh, nothing much." Lachlan smiled. "And there's no rush either… We've had our eyes set on… an asset who we think would be very profitable in our organization but we haven't reached out due to-"

"Lachlan!" Oliver interrupted her. "_Just say it_."

Lachlan gave him a look, as she didn't like when people interrupted her. "I want you to recruit McKenna Hall to the organization. She's perfect for us, she would be perfect for and since I know the two of you have… _history_, she would trust you."

Oliver looked at Lachlan, while images of McKenna flashed in front of him. He hadn't thought about her in a long while and doing so now, hurt more than he'd expected. Either way, Lachlan was crazy, delusional if she believed McKenna would ever consider joining the organization.

"Lachlan…" He started. "McKenna was… _is_ a detective, she follows the law cover to cover… She would never join your organization, she… her heart is too pure and she… she wouldn't survive it."

"You did." Lachlan said. "You weren't too keen on joining me either but you _did_… and you survived."

"That was entirely different and you know it." Oliver said. "I had no choice after the…" He immediately stopped talked and looked at Lachlan. "Lachlan, _please_… McKenna isn't the right person to bring into the organization, believe me. You have to find _someone else_."

Lachlan pouted for a second, before turning serious again. "I can well see you're not on board with this idea. We'll put it aside for the time being and focus on _your _problem. Smolak and Salomea, we have to find them… and the young woman working for Smolak."

Oliver immediately remembered that Misha had mentioned someone to Beatrycze, when they were up at Cameron Lake and Felicity had gone missing. That someone had been with Felicity when she had been able to escape.

"Can you find out who the woman is?" Oliver asked. "She was the last person to see Felicity… before Felicity ran away, she could perhaps…" Lachlan gave him a look, which told him that she already knew who she was. "You already know her…"

"_Of course_ we do." Lachlan said. "Her name is Ksenia Martinek, she's been working with Smolak for years. This is not my first time, Oliver."

"I'll put a team on it right away, they will be very thorough, quick and efficient. It won't take long." She picked up her mobile and dialed a number. When someone on the other hand picked up, she started talking.

"_Koivu seitsemän-yhdeksän-kolme_."

"_Tarvitsen suojaushälytys heti_. _Komarov kuusi-viisi-kolme_."

"_Vantage pointe Filppula ocht-cúig-amháin_."

"_Aseta joukkue tyvestä. Turvahälytyksestä koodi punainen, sillä_ Salomea, Beatrycze_;_ Smolak, Misha _ja _Martinek, Ksenia. _Tärkeää, että aiheet ovat elossa, tarpeeksi kuulusteltavaksi._"

"_Teachtaireacht Deimhnigh_."

"_Koivu seacht-naoi-trí_."

With that, Lachlan hung up the phone and turned to Oliver and nodded. "It's done. I have a team out in the field. It won't be long until they find them as they are very efficient."

"Thank you, Lachlan." Oliver said. "I'm… I appreciate you accepting to help me, even though…"

Lachlan knowing where it was going, put a hand up. "Oliver. Don't mention it. I always help my friends in need." She gave him a light smile, leaned in and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. "I'll be in touch."

With that, she gave him one last smirk and turned away. Oliver took a deep breath and closed his eyes. That had been very hard for him, reaching out to Lachlan, seeing her again and having to explain why he needed her help. It had gone better than he ever could've imagined.

He turned around to get going down to the foundry, when Thea came rushing up to him. "Ollie! Where are you going!"

"I'm… I need some air." Oliver said.

"Alright." Thea said. "Who was that blond you were talking to? It looked… intense. I've never seen her around before…" She winked. "She was stunning!"

"An old friend." Oliver said, trying to hint to his sister he didn't want to talk about Lachlan anymore. But when Thea tilted her head and gave him a look, he sighed. "_Thea_…"

"Oliver…" Thea said back, huge grin on her face. When she saw she was annoying her big brother, she nodded. "Alrighty then, I won't bother you. I still think there's something going on with you and the _ice queen_. Call it female intuition."

"Whatever." Oliver said and he walked away from his sister.

Moments later, Oliver walked down the stairs to the foundry. Diggle was sitting by the computer screens, tapping away on the keyboard.

"Any luck with finding Smolak?" Oliver asked.

Diggle turned around, shaking his head. "No, not yet…" He said and Oliver clinched his fists. "However, I found something else… Detective Lance sent it to me. Surveillance footage from a few nights ago."

Oliver walked up to him. "What?"

Diggle gave him a look, and pulled up some photos that appeared on the screens. At first Oliver didn't see anything of interest, as the photos were not of the best quality. However, he noticed a neon sign that read The Strathcona hotel, nothing else over the ordinary but then he noticed it. Or rather, someone. _Beatrycze Salomea_.

"Salomea." He said and Diggle nodded. "What is she doing at the Strathcona hotel?"

"I was asking myself the same question." Diggle said. "The Strathcona isn't exactly… Let's just say, it's a shady place. I didn't get why Salomea would turn up there… So I did some digging on my own and… I found something." He paused and the look he gave Oliver was worrying. "But Oliver…"

Oliver looked at him. "What?"

Diggle didn't say anything, he only tapped on the keyboard to change the photos and then Oliver saw it.

It was Beatrycze Salomea again but this time she wasn't alone. She was with Isabel Rochev. In the photos they were in a hotel room or something similar, they were drinking and talking, in some of the photos Isabel was even smiling – which she never did around Oliver at Queen Consolidated. It was obvious they were well acquainted.

Oliver was so surprised by it, that he took a step back. "_What the_…?"

Diggle turned around in his chair and looked at Oliver carefully. "Oliver…"

"Isabel and Beatrycze are working together… How can this be…?" Oliver said, obviously startled by the revelation that his business partner was working in secret with a criminal.

How long had this been going on? Was it part of their plan to take over Queen Consolidated from Oliver? Was Isabel involved with Smolak and the operation at the Fairmont, the one Lachlan had mentioned? Had Isabel also something to do with Felicity's abduction?

"Oliver, what should we do about this?" Diggle asked, seeing Oliver's frustration and shock.

"I need to gather the QC board, I need to get them to sign over the company fully to me… We need to freeze Isabel out…" He buried his face in his eyes as he leaned against the desk. "I can't believe this. _How did I not see it_?" He looked at Diggle.

"You need to share this information with your mother." Diggle told him. "Not _everything_ but she have to know."

Oliver nodded. "Yes. I have to tell her. She will ask how I got all the information, though… What will I say then?" He said.

"Tell them you got it from me." He heard a voice behind them. _Lachlan_'s voice. Oliver turned around and faced her. "What are you doing here?"

"I had a feeling you would need me." Lachlan smirked. She turned to Diggle, who had pulled his gun and was now pointing it at her. "Lower your gun, mr Diggle, I'm on _your _side."

Diggle looked at Oliver, with confused eyes, but lowered his gun as Oliver nodded.

Lachlan smiled and walked up to Oliver. "So, Isabel Rochev is working together with Beatrycze Salomea. I didn't see that coming!" She gave Oliver a small USB memory. "Give this to your mother. It holds every single piece of information on Isabel Rochev and her involvement with Salomea. After she's read it, she will do everything in her power to take Rochev down." Lachlan smirked. "Trust me, Oliver, it's good! And it will bring Salomea down with her, I assure you." She placed the memory stick in Oliver's hand. "However… You can't show this to your mother until _after_ you've been to Dublin with Isabel."

Oliver stared at her and he was about to protest loudly, when Lachlan continued. "My team has located Misha Smolak and Ksenia Martinek. Beatrycze can't be far away. Either way, we will have them captured by sunrise. Isabel is smart, she will know there is a connection if you confront her all of a sudden and blow her cover."

"You're right." Oliver said, nodding. "She will put two and two together if I all of a sudden…" He looked at Diggle. "Digg, I need extra security on my mother and on Thea, could you arrange that?"

Diggle nodded slowly. "Right. I'm on it." With that, he walked out of the foundry via the extra entrance.

Oliver glanced at Lachlan, who was smiling still. "I see you haven't told your partner about our… _partnership_."

"Nothing to tell." Oliver said.

"_Hurtful_." Lachlan told him back. "Anyways, I've helped you with this further. Now will you _please _consider helping me?" Oliver gritted his teeth. "Lachlan. I told you-"

"Yes, yes, I know…" Lachlan nodded. "And I understand you want to focus on everything that's going on. But you know I don't do favours for _free_." She walked in closer on Oliver, _very close_ and she looked at Oliver intensely. "You'll make it up to me, Oliver. One way or another."

"Understood." Oliver looked as intensely back at her. "When your team moves in on Smolak and the lot, I want to be there. I want to help."

"Oliver, no." Lachlan said. "This is nothing like… The team is highly skilled and extremely dangerous. They will be ruthless once they…"

"I can _handle _it." Oliver said firmly. "I won't stand by." In this moment, Felicity lying in the hospital bed, lifeless, flashed in front of his eyes. "_I have to stop them_."

Lachlan nodded. "Fine. I will alert them. They will gather before starting the mission. I'm on my way there now. You can join me." She glanced at the monter with the green suit. "Are you coming as Oliver Queen… or your other persona?" As Oliver walked up to the monter and nearly ripped the green suit off, and grabbing his bow, Lachlan smiled. "Good. I'll alert the team they will be joined by the _Arrow_."

**There was no choice to make**


	25. Ep 24 - When you get to a place where yo

**When you get to a place where you understand that love and belonging, your worthiness, is a birthright and not something you have to earn, anything is possible.**

- _Brene Brown_

The following hours were extremely hectic and tough for Oliver, Diggle, Lachlan and her team. Once it had been settled that Oliver would be joining Lachlan and her team to locate Misha Smolak, Ksenia Martinek and Beatrycze Salomea, he went with Lachlan to meet up with her team, while Diggle handled getting extra security for Moira and Thea. Secretly, of course, he'd wanted to join Oliver on the mission but he hadn't run the idea by Oliver, as he knew very well that all of this had become _very_ personal for Oliver since he found out Isabel Rochev had something to do with it.

Since it occurred as such late hours, Moira was since long ago asleep in the Queen mansion. All Diggle had to do was to call in extra security to circle the mansion. It proved to be more difficult with Thea, on the other hand, as she was still at Verdant and Diggle knew that if he brought in security on Verdant, she would most likely start to question him and she would surely start to wonder what was going on if Diggle himself started to follow her around everywhere.

So Diggle went to someone he knew never left Thea's side: her boyfriend, Roy. He had to discreetly tell Roy to keep an extra careful watch out for Thea.

The music was pounding loudly as Diggle stepped in on the dance floor of Verdant. The whole club was packed and he had to watch his every step so that he didn't bump into any of the guests and have them spill their drinks. He kept his eyes out for Roy, but didn't see him at first.

He groaned as the pounding music screeched in his ears and he was bumped into by two giggling blondes in mini-skirts. "Why does it feel like I'm back at my old job as taking care of spoiled brats?" He mumbled to himself.

Then he spotted Roy over by the stage, he was talking with the DJ. He spotted Diggle watching him and Diggle raised his hand, making a gesture so that Roy would know that he was needed.

It took a moment, but Diggle made his way to Roy. The youngster nodded in his direction and gestured to the DJ to continue with his work.

"Roy, could I have a moment?" Diggle asked.

"Sure man." Roy said. "What's up?" Diggle took him aside, and looked around so that no one out of the ordinary could hear them.

"Something has happened and Oliver wants you to keep an extra eye out for Thea. It's _very important_ that she _doesn't leave your side_, Roy." Diggle said. "I can't go into details but… You know that Felicity is in the hospital?" Diggle paused to see Roy nod slowly. "Well, we have reason to believe that the same people that put Felicity in the hospital, might go after Oliver… or anyone _close_ to Oliver." He looked at Roy, who frowned.

"Like Thea?" The young man asked and as Diggle nodded in reply, he could see the worry appearing in Roy's eyes.

"Like Thea." Diggle repeated. "I know Thea is important to you, she is _very_ important to Oliver and he would do anything to keep her safe." He paused and sent a well-wishing thought to Oliver who was going to fight Smolak and the rest any minute now.

"Where is Oliver right now?" Roy asked. "I understand you two are… whatever, but I'd think that he'd come and ask me himself… You know, since Thea is his sister-"

"Oliver is out taking care of the people that are threating his family." Diggle interrupted him. "He knows you care deeply for Thea, that's why he trusts you to keep her safe. So _please_… Will you do this Roy?"

Roy nodded. "_Of course_ I will. I will look after her."

"Good." Diggle nodded, extracting his hand so that Roy could take it. "Thank you, Roy." He looked at the time. "I have to go."

He nodded to Roy and left Verdant. Before he walked out the entrance, he turned to see Roy walking up to Thea, embracing her and giving her a gentle kiss. It was clear that he would stay by her side for the rest of the night and after that.

Diggle himself, was going home to Lyla, even if he would rather be out on the field with Oliver. But he knew it was best to let Oliver handle it alone, considering from the reaction he'd got when he found out from Lachlan that Isabel Rochev was involved with Beatrycze Salomea and Misha Smolak. Plus, he had Lachlan's team to help and from what Diggle had gathered, those guys seemed to be real bad-asses.

And then there was the fact that Oliver had forbidden Diggle to come with him. "Go home to Lyla. You _need_ to be with Lyla." He had said.

"Alright Oliver, I will…" Diggle had said. "Then you need to make sure you come back. There's someone you need to see in the morning, remember?" He had of course been talking about Felicity and Diggle had expected Oliver to show emotion, even if only a little glance of it, when hearing Felicity's name but his face had been blank, there had been nothing.

This scared Diggle, because he had watched Oliver being torn apart over Felicity, heartbroken over Felicity, mad over or because of Felicity, in despair over Felicity and of course _in love _with Felicity… During these weeks that Felicity had been in the hospital, not once had Diggle seen any sign of Oliver losing the light, the _faith_ he had gained thanks to Felicity.

But not tonight. Oliver's face, as he had put on his arrow suit, had been stripped of emotions and that worried Diggle. Because he, even if Oliver hadn't realized it yet, knew that Felicity was Oliver's light, the light inside of him that kept him sane and still with a humanity, the light that made sure Oliver still was _Oliver Queen_ and not only _The Arrow_.

Tonight it felt like Oliver had gone back to the person he was when Diggle had first met him and found out about his alter-ego. It was like Oliver had fallen back to his personality as _the Hood_, when nothing else mattered than the missions at hand: extracting a bunch of names from a list and not getting close to anyone. It was very worrying to see, but Diggle also understood why. Oliver's life had come crashing down _again_ once he had learned that Isabel, a woman who was supposed to be his business partner, seemed to be darker than he had believed and that she had been secretly working with Beatrycze.

As Diggle sat in his car, driving home to Lyla, he said a silent prayer that everything would work out for Oliver on tonight's mission.

Oliver and Lachlan had sat in silence the whole way to the location where Lachlan's team had been waiting for further orders. It was just as well, because all Oliver could think about was the betrayal he felt towards Isabel. Sure, the two of them didn't get along that well and the fact that Isabel was almost more of an _ice queen_ than Lachlan was but still… Finding out that Isabel was a criminal… That hadn't been on his radar at all.

Oliver had been prepared to join the men and fight, so it came as a huge surprise when Lachlan turned to him, telling him that he could join the team as far as to the location where the targets were, but that was as far as he could go.

Oliver had, of course, been furious. "I'm not going to stand by, Lachlan, you need to let me-"

"Out of the question. You'll get yourself killed, for sure!" Lachlan argued. "Your head is not in the game, not completely anyway. You're too much out of focus for me to let you go out there. My men will handle it, you can watch."

Oliver knew Lachlan was right, he was not sharp enough to go out and capture Smolak, Salomea and whoever else was with them. It still didn't mean that it irritated the hell out of him.

"Fine." He muttered. "I will be present when you interrogate them, though." He gave Lachlan a look, telling her that he wouldn't take no for an answer.

"As you wish." Lachlan said.

It took no more than twenty minutes for Lachlan's team to get the first target; Ksenia, Misha Smolak's assistant, rapidly followed by other people working for them, others had been casualties as Lachlan's team wasn't known to show mercy. As Lachlan was communicating with the leader of her team, they were told that Beatrycze Salomea had been able to get away, but Misha Smolak was close by and they could get him if they moved with caution. Isabel Rochev was also close by, slowed down as she had bit hit when the team stormed the location.

"Do it!" Lachlan ordered. She turned to Oliver, noticing how his fists were clenched together and his face was hard as stone, angry. "You heard them. Beatrycze got away…"

"Not if I have anything to do about it." Oliver said with a voice cold as ice. With that, he turned around and walked out, before Lachlan could stop him.


	26. Ep 25 - The only real battle in life is

**The only real battle in life is between hanging on and letting go**

- _Shannon L. Adler_

* * *

><p>Diggle had reluctantly taken Oliver's advice and gone home to Lyla. Maybe it was wrong of him to rather wanting to be out on the field, fighting, with Oliver instead of being at home with Lyla, his <em>pregnant<em> wife - well, on paper they were divorced but who'd be focusing on technicalities when the two of them always, at least according to Diggle, had been meant to be - who might be needing him more than Oliver. But Lyla was a soldier too, she knew what it meant to Diggle when he know had left his friend alone in battle, she knew how strongly he believed in the _army principles_.

When Diggle walked through the front door to the apartment he and Lyla bought together not too long ago, Lyla was lying on the couch, peacefully sleeping. The _feeling sick_ part of the pregnancy had caught up to her during the past few days, which had made her tired and without the capacity to do anything else than lay on the couch and eating whatever type of food was her craving for the day. Diggle felt bad for Lyla when she felt so miserable, but on the other hand he would gladly run down to the corner store for her when she craved croissants filled with peanut butter and apricot jam or crackers and pickled peppers. It would be all worth it in the end… Their own little miracle, their child would be with them in five months' time. Diggle was thrilled to become a father, just like Lyla was over to moon with joy to become a mother, she had wanted that for a long time already.

He walked carefully up to Lyla, still sleeping on the couch, and kissed her forehead gently. Then he continued to the bedroom and as he carefully closed the door, he turned his comms back on, so that he could be in direct contact with Oliver. But to his surprise, it was turned off on the other end as he tried to communicate.

"Damn it Oliver!" Diggle gritted his teeth. He didn't give up though and instead reached out to Lachlan.

"Mr. Diggle, you're calling at an extremely bad time." Lachlan growled as she answered on the other line.

"I'm sorry. I tried Oliver's comms but he turned them off or something…" There was a loud series of explosions in the background. "What the hell is going on out there?"

"We're having a bit of a situation. Oliver decided to go after Beatrycze Salomea on his own and some of her men decided to attack us." Lachlan said. "We have Misha Smolak and his assistant, Isabel Rochev is said to soon be captured as my officers have surrounded her a few clicks from here. Salomea is the one who's still on the run…"

"Oliver will get her, I'm sure of that…" Diggle said. "Nevertheless, you will help him, won't you?"

"I'm positive that Oliver will capture Salomea, there's no doubt in my mind." Lachlan said. "But yes, my team will come to his aid once we have Rochev." Another loud explosion was heard and Lachlan shouted franticly something in a foreign language. "Mr. Diggle, I apologize… I need to cut this call short as I have other obligations to turn to."

Diggle sighed, feeling like Lachlan wasn't telling him everything, something was not right. "All right. Good luck." He said, doing his best to hide the worry in his voice.

There was a click and the line went quiet. Diggle now knew for sure that something wasn't right.

Again he had to fight himself to rush out the door as quickly as he had entered, to go help his friend out… But he then remembered what Oliver had told him, taking him aside from Lachlan back at Verdant.

"_John, I know you want to come help but I would rather have you stay behind. Lachlan and her team are cold, ruthless, they are… They don't work the same way you and me do, you won't be comfortable around them, and I know you._"

Diggle had protested but Oliver had cut him off, "_End of discussion. Go home to Lyla. I will call you when it's over_."

Diggle had known that it was no point in fighting Oliver, so he had to only trust that Oliver could indeed get the bad guys. He did wonder how Oliver had got to know someone like Lachlan and he had been curious to ask Oliver, but then he had seen how Oliver had acted around the blonde woman and he had immediately understood to keep his mouth shut. He knew though, that something very bad had happened to make Oliver get together with someone like her and her organization – that sounded like it was something very dangerous and highly illegal – and considering how cold and reserved he had acted with her _now_, something _really bad_ had to have happened between them.

He said a silent prayer again that Oliver would come out of this alive and well, that he would get Isabel Rochev, find out why she was working with Beatrycze Salomea and Misha Smolak and find out why the two latter had their hide out at the top of the Fairmont and why they had taken Felicity, what good could that do them; risking her life like that.

With that, he walked out of the bedroom and back into the living room, where Lyla had now woken up. She looked up at John with tired eyes and smiled.

"Johnny." She said, making Diggle smile by the surprise in her voice. "You're home… I thought you'd be gone all night with Oliver…"

Diggle sat down next to her. "Truth to be told, so did I. I was ready to go out on the field with him and that Lachlan woman but… Oliver sent me home, said something about me not being able to accept the methods Lachlan and her team use."

Lyla looked at him, her eyes wide. "Wait, did you say Lachlan? As in_ Lachlan McCreesh_?"

John didn't understand what was happening. How did Lyla know about Lachlan and how did it seem that she knew more about Lachlan's _organization_ that he did? "You know her?"

"Only by reputation, but that's enough…" Lyla said and shrugged. "Her mother was part of the _IRA_, a ruthless soldier and part of the very inner circle of the _IRA_, she was killed during the bombing in Enniskillen in 1987, I think. Lachlan was not even one year old. Her father was a soldier for Russian _Spetsnaz_, he then got recruited for _Zaslon_, a top sec-"

"A top secret special force within the _SVR RF_." Diggle continued. "I've heard of them, if yet very little. How do you know so much about Lachlan, anyways? I'd never head of her."

"That's the whole idea, I believe, keeping _Zaslon_ secret and unknown for the rest of the world." Lyla said. "Lachlan, on the other hand, has been on _A.R.G.U.S._'s radar for years. We don't know who her father was exactly, his identity must've been erased once he joined _Zaslon_ but we do know that Lachlan went to live with him when she was 14 and that he died a few years back. He had to train her, which means Lachlan most certainly is _Spetsnaz_, possibly working for _Zaslon_." Lyla paused and looked at Diggle. "Johnny, she's as ruthless as her mother was, if not even more ruthless. This means she's _extremely_ dangerous. I don't feel comfortable with you being around-"

"Don't worry." Diggle said and placed a gentle kiss on Lyla's cheek. "I told you, Oliver didn't allow me near her out on the field. They have it handled. Smolak, Salomea and Rochev will be captured in no time." He watched as Lyla froze and her eyes shot wide open again. "What?"

"Rochev? As in Isabel Rochev?" Lyla said. "No, Lachlan can't go near Isabel, she…" She stopped talking and Diggle, as surprised about Lyla's reaction to the mention of Isabel Rochev, decided not to ask more questions as he could see Lyla wouldn't say anything more. He instead took her hand, stroking his thumb over her hands. "Would you like something to drink? Tea, hot chocolate?"

Lyla smiled at him. "Tea would be lovely, thank you."

"Good. I'll go make some." Diggle said. As he went into the kitchen, he didn't see how Lyla reached for her mobile phone and slowly got up to walk out of the apartment.

Out in the hall, she called her supervisor. She had to call in the information that she had received from John, that Lachlan McCreesh was in Starling City and that there was a very great risk she could put Isabel Rochev in danger. This situation was on highest alert – Lyla didn't know the details, but she still was obliged to call it in. She knew John would be quick with the tea, so she ended the call quickly and walked back in to the apartment.

She had barely made it back to the sofa, when John came walking in with a tray for her, with a steaming hot cup of tea and a croissant, filled with peanut butter and apricot jam. She smiled at him.

"Thank you." She took a bite of the croissant. "Delicious. I'll finish this and then I'll head to bed."

"Alright." Diggle smiled.

* * *

><p>Oliver's heart was racing as he drove his motorbike far past the speed limit. He had Lachlan communicating with him in the coms, giving him more instructions to where he would find Beatrycze Salomea.<p>

"Oliver, by the next curve take left. You will come to a smaller road. Continue on it until you come to an abandoned farm house, there is where Salomea is." Lachlan said. "When you've got her, come back as quickly as you can."

"Got it." Oliver replied. "Is everything going according to plan over there?"

"Yes. I will have Smolak and Martinek moved to a more secure location, we're still getting attacked by Salomea's men – what's left of them – and I will go after Rochev. I just heard from my men that she is surrounded. Everything is working out, Oliver. You only have to get Salomea and this mission is over."

"Alright. Remember, keep them alive." Oliver said, well aware of Lachlan's ruthlessness.

"Done. Over."

A few moments later, Oliver had made it to the smaller road. He decided to park his motorcycle and go by foot for the rest of the way. He immediately started running, quicker and quicker as he got used with the uneven ground.

It didn't take him longer than five minutes to get to the farmhouse. It indeed looked abandoned and Oliver decided to circle the area carefully first, before moving in. Once it looked clear, he slowly moved towards the house, his bow firmly in hand with the arrow-filled quiver on his back. Once he got visual through a window, he could see someone moving inside the house. _Beatrycze Salomea_.

Seconds later, he came crashing through the door, standing face to face with Beatrycze.

"_Boże, pomóż mi_!" Beatrycze gasped, by the sight of the green-masked man and she made a run for the door but Oliver immediately shot an arrow as a warning. It hit only inches from Beatrycze's head.

"Don't move!" Oliver growled at her.

"Please…" Beatrycze said. "Please, don't hurt me. What do you want? Money? That can be arranged, I have-"

"I said, _don't move_!" Oliver drew his bow, with the arrow pointed at Beatrycze's heart. "Move and I'll put you down!"

Beatrycze stared with him, her eyes blank. She didn't seem afraid of him, which was perhaps why she said the following,

"You're working with someone, am I right? Otherwise you wouldn't have found us. Who is it?" She paused to see if Oliver would give anything away, but of course he didn't. "Of course you won't tell me, but be assured… _We'll get you_. You have no idea who you're messing with, we will get our revenge!" Beatrycze's loud voice was interrupted by her getting struck from behind and she fell to the ground, unconscious. Oliver hadn't seen that coming, so he still had his bow drawn back, when he heard someone whisper,

"Calm down, it's only me!" and Lachlan stepped out from the shadows. She looked at Beatrycze lying on the floor and looked back up at Oliver. "You got her, well done. Let's get back to the base." She turned around and waved, whereas two soldiers came out from the shadows and picked Beatrycze up, after tying her hands together and also one of the soldiers picked out a syringe of some sort and injected her with something, but Oliver didn't see that as the soldier was very quick and discrete.

"How did you get here so fast?" Oliver asked.

Lachlan gave him a look. "That you even have to ask that, makes me wonder if you even understand what it is I do for a living."

Oliver sighed, and made a gesture for them to walk out. He took the time to look at his watch, it was 4 a.m. He hadn't realized it until now, but the exhaustion was beginning to take a toll on him. He needed to get to a bed soon or he would collapse right on the spot.

"Thank you for the help tonight, Lachlan." Oliver said. "I wouldn't have been able to get them all this quickly and without casualties without you. I appreciate it."

Lachlan looked at him, said nothing but only nodded. She gestured at the soldiers to carry Beatrycze outside, where a van was waiting. Lachlan stepped into the passenger seat and before she closed the door, she looked at Oliver.

"Go home, Oliver, you look like hell. I will take care of the prisoners and let you know when it's time to interrogate them."

Oliver nodded and watched as the van drove away. He put on his helmet and got on the motorcycle, heading back to Starling City.

* * *

><p>Diggle had been watching TV, the sound on low as Lyla had gone to bed hours earlier, but then he had fallen asleep. All of a sudden, he could hear Oliver's voice through the comms, which woke him up.<p>

"Digg."

"Oliver?" Diggle said, quite surprised to hear Oliver's voice. "What the hell, man, you shut your comms off? Not cool!"

"Sorry." It was all Oliver had to say on that point. "We got them. Lachlan is taking them to a secure location and we'll question them later. I'm on my way home now."

"Good… I guess. Are you sure we can trust Lachlan to keep them… well, alive?" Diggle asked.

"I hope so, or all of this would've been for nothing." Oliver said. "Lachlan can never be fully trusted, Digg, that is something you need to realize about her."

"I'm beginning to get that." Diggle mumbled. He looked at the time, it was nearly 5 a.m. "Where are you?"

"I'm heading to the foundry." Oliver replied. "There's no point in going home so I'll crash here. I'll hopefully get a few hours' sleep and then head to the hospital around lunch time."

"Sounds like a plan. Do you want me to come with you to the hospital or-?" Diggle carefully asked.

"No, I… I think I want to do this on my own." Oliver said slowly, followed by a long pause. "I would like to be alone with her when-"

"I get it, man. There will be time for me to visit afterwards and I know how eager you are to see her and… I have a feeling that she'd like to see you, as the first one when she wakes up." Diggle said, smiling to himself.

"Thanks." Oliver said. "I'm at the foundry now, I'll talk with you later."

"Alright, man. Get some rest and I'll catch you later."

"Later."

Diggle could only imagine Felicity's reaction when she'd wake up and find Oliver there. He had known for a long while already how she felt about him and it was long past time that they did something about it.

* * *

><p>Oliver hadn't been exactly telling the truth when he told Diggle he'd stay at the foundry. He had been by there, sure, but only to change clothes. He then had continued to <em>Mater Private Hospital<em> and was now heading up to the ICU. He had called in before-hand, asking if it was okay that he came. He had talked with Nurse Vilma, who had been more than delighted to let him come up. Oliver had a feeling Vilma had a soft spot for him, or maybe it was because he saw how much Felicity meant to him.

He had talked briefly with Nurse Vilma before walking into the room, and she had told him that since they would wake Felicity up from the coma in a few hours, Dr Byrne had decided to see if she could breathe on her own, which she seemed to be able to do.

He was now standing in front of Felicity's bed, watching her for a moment. She looked so peaceful and her face had regained a bit of color since the last time he saw her. She looked healthier, which gave Oliver hope that she would be fully recovered.

He carefully took of his jacket, put it on a stool and sat down on the bed. He put out his hand and let his thumb carefully run against her cheeks.

"You'll be all right, Felicity." He whispered. "You'll be alright." He then slowly and carefully laid down next to her, doing his best to avoid the IV chords. He turned his face to Felicity's, and the second his head hit the pillow, he was fast asleep. This was where he needed to be.

He was exactly where he was supposed to be. _With Felicity_.


	27. Ep 26 - I saw the angel in the marble an

**I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.**

**- **_Michelangelo_

Oliver was awakened by a light hand on his shoulder. His eyes shot open immediately and he sat up, looking first around him and then noticing nurse Vilma and Dr Byrne standing by the end of the bed.

"Mr Queen." Dr Byrne said, trying to hide the surprise in his voice but it was clear as day. He had not been expecting to see Oliver lying in Felicity's bed. "Imagine my surprise and confusion when I found you here this morning when I came to check on Ms Smoak." He turned to nurse Vilma. "Nurse Vilma told me about your little agreement straight away, and even if I wouldn't approve normally to people sneaking up to the ICU in the middle of the night to stay with their girlfriends."

"Dr Byrne…" Oliver started. He had chosen to ignore Dr Byrne's comment about Felicity being his girlfriend, because in all honesty, he didn't know what they were.

But if him flinching the second Dr Byrne had said it was any indication, it was clear as they to the doctor and nurse in the room that something was going on between Olive and Felicity. "It was my fault, I convinced nurse Vilma to let me come here, I…" He turned to look at Felicity. "I had to see her."

Dr Byrne looked at him and nodded. "Anyways Mr Queen, just know that I'm overlooking this and… We will be waking Felicity up from the coma in a few moments' time, I simply want to do a few final tests before, to see that it's safe to go ahead."

_Something was happening with her, Felicity could feel it. _

_She had been starting to feel lighter, in a way, and all that darkness that had been around before – like the nightmare moment in the park with her father or the whirlwind that had knocked her out before she saw her mother – was completely gone now._

_She had also started to get flashes, memories, from before she came to this… _world_. They were quick but Felicity could make some of them out - from the room she was kept in after had been abducted by her father, lying on the stretcher with Ksenia watching her right before she escaped, Oliver finding her in the cave and looking extremely worried. There were several memories of him included and in one he was saying something but Felicity couldn't make it out. The final one she remembered, was from what she guessed was a hospital room and once again she saw Oliver, if only for a second._

_She wasn't sure what it meant, all these memories and flashes of Oliver but she had started to suspect that the lightness meant she had to be getting out of this strange place she found herself in. Maybe she was finally waking up from the coma?_

_She remembered what her mother had told her: "_You love him. I would guess he loves you too and that is the reason to why you can let go of all your fears, Felicity. Oliver will protect you – with his life - from anyone who could hurt you and more important... The love you feel for him will be the main reason to why you can wake up. When it's time._"_

_Felicity found herself smiling, mainly because of that her mother had been so sure that admitting she was in love with Oliver and it was enough for Felicity to wake up from the coma. Her mother had always had a sixth sense about these things, even if she had never met Oliver. Felicity was sure that Elena would've liked Oliver though, and she had her suspicions that Oliver would've warmed up to Elena as well, that the wild spirit that was her mother, would've loosened up Oliver's otherwise hard exterior._

_The thing was, though… Felicity already knew she was in love with Oliver, her mother hadn't had to point it out. She had been in love with Oliver for a long time already, she simply hadn't admitted it to herself, and she hadn't let herself admit it. Now, with a little bit of help from her mother and self-realization… _

_It was clear as day._

_She felt a warm rush go through her and the lights started to flicker around her._

"Wait, you'll wake her up _now_?" Oliver said and then remembered it had been decided to happen around noon – which meant he had slept longer than he originally had planned. It had to be around noon now, which meant he had missed the morning meeting at QC and he had missed lunch with his mother.

"That's right. Once we start waking Ms Smoak up from the coma, you won't be allowed in here for a minimum of 12 hours."

"So, Mr Queen, I suggest you go to the cafeteria and get yourself something to eat. Or atleast a cup of coffee. You look like you need it." Dr Byrne said and gave him a look.

"Yeah… Okay." Oliver mumbled. "You will call me with updates, as soon as anything changes?" Dr Byrne only nodded. "All right, thank you."

He walked out of the office and found his phone in his jacket. There was several missed calls from his mother and Thea, plus several text messages from Thea. Oliver decided to leave it for a while and get something to eat.

At the QC head office, Moira was walking across her office, fuming while as Thea tried to calm her down.

Earlier the same morning, Moira had received some disturbing news and she had rushed to the QC offices to do some damage control. So far, the media was unaware – it was only a matter of time - but the QC offices around the world had found out and they were infuriated.

Moira's PA was desperately trying to answer the gazillions of phone calls that came in, the other QC workers in the office were desperately running around, not knowing what to do.

"Mom, calm down!" Thea tried talking sense with her mother but it was no point. "I'm sure it will work out, whatever it is… Have you tried calling Oliver?" Moira shot her a dark look. "I take that as a yes. _Where is he!_"

"I can tell you where he is." Moira shouted and Thea flinched at the angry tone in her voice. "He's probably at the hospital, with that IT _slut_ Felicity Smoak! That's where he's been for the past weeks, completely ignoring his duties at the company! And _look _where that got us!"

Moira was right to be worried. The horrid news she had received earlier, had told her that Isabel Rochev was dead. She had also learned, once the global QC offices started calling, that Isabel had been working with someone to take over QC completely and that the overtaking was on the merge of succeeding.

It was not known who Isabel had been working with but Moira knew it couldn't be good. She had known from the second Isabel Rochev had stepped into QC, that she would only be trouble.

It seemed like she had been right. If nothing wasn't done quickly, QC would fall out of her hands and she and her family would lose everything.

Wasn't it that the perfect moment for Oliver to step into his mother's office and meet her angry eyes and his sister staring at him with worried eyes?


	28. Ep 27 - A true knight is fuller of brave

**A true knight is fuller of bravery in the midst, than in the beginning of danger.**

- _Philip Sidney_

Oliver had never seen his mother in the state she was in now – absolute rage – while Thea looked very worried and small.

"What is going on?" He asked, as calmly as he could.

He had unfortunately heard his mother's comment about Felicity ("…that IT slut Felicity Smoak") and to say that his blood was boiling was most definitely an understatement.

He had to put a lid on that though, if he got into an argument with his mother now about her little misstep, thing would get very ugly – and things were bad enough as they were.

Thea looked at him and made a gesture for him to step into the office, while Moira turned away from him and walked up to the window.

"Mom got a call earlier this morning… They said that Isabel Rochev is dead, that she had been working with someone to take over the company. The global offices have been ringing all morning, freaking out. Mom is trying to keep it out from the media until we know more but…"

Thea's voice broke.

"Ollie, we could lose the company!"

"We won't lose the company, I will make sure of that!" Oliver said and put a comforting hand on his sister's shoulder.

He turned to look at his mother, who still was looking out the window.

She looked tired and distraught.

"Thea. How about you get some coffees for us?" Oliver said and smiled gently at Thea.

Thea looked at him and then nodded. She knew that this was just a way for him to get her to leave so that he and their mother could talk in private.

"Okay. I'll see you later."

Oliver watched as Thea left the offices and then turned to his mother again. "Mom."

He could hear her sigh and then she turned around.

"I don't have the strength to fight with you right now, Oliver," She said. "The board is already planning on shutting us down, shutting me down and God knows when it will be out in the media that Isabel is…"

Her voice broke and she closed her eyes.

"Mom, I don't believe Isabel is dead, she can't be…" Oliver tried assuring his mother. "And the part with her working in secret to take over the company…"

"Enough, Oliver." Moira said. "There is something you need to know about Isabel Rochev… I knew something was up when she showed interest in our company, saying she wanted to help you save it, help it return to its former glory…"

She looked at him and took a deep breath.

"Several years ago, Isabel worked as an intern at QC. She was enthusiastic, smart, and hard-working and… Of course, very beautiful."

She paused and Oliver had a bad feeling where she was going with this.

"I already told you about the problems me and your father were having in our marriage, with his endless affairs… Well, he had a weakness for strong, beautiful women."

Oliver stared at her, slowly realizing what she was telling him.

"They were… together?"

Moira nodded.

"Yes. I didn't find out until their affair had gone on for a long while, but once I did, I made sure her internship was terminated and that she wouldn't be welcome here anymore. Your father protested of course, tried to convince me that it wasn't necessary because it was just a fling."

Moira paused, remembering the betrayal she had suffered so many times due to her late husband.

"But I knew he was lying, I knew he felt something for her. So I made the most common threat in these situations: if he didn't end it with her, I would leave him, take you and your sister with me and Robert would never see you again."

She shook her head.

"Thinking back, I'm not proud of it but… Robert listened because he loved you both so much and he didn't want to lose you. Our marriage got better after that, we almost were as happy as when we first were married."

Oliver couldn't believe he was hearing this. He had no idea that his parents had had these kinds of problems. But, on the other hand, he had been too busy partying and being a reckless teenage playboy.

"I… I had no idea." He mumbled.

"How could you?" Moira said. "We did our very best to keep our problems away from you, and if you remember, it wasn't very often we fought so you could hear."

Oliver nodded as he now remembered he had only heard his parents fighting maybe once or twice, so that he had been able to hear or see it.

He had been able to notice the tension and the, very rare, tear-stained face of his mother… but his parents arguing out in the open, for him and Thea to hear, had never happened.

However, he had been quite occupied with upholding his image as the Billionaire Playboy to pay attention to his family having issues.

"Mom… I will fix this." Oliver assured Moira. "I don't know how yet but I will fix it, we won't lose the company."

He paused.

"Have you been in contact with Ned Foster? He could surely help us out…"

"He was the first one I called." Moira nodded. "He's working on solving the legal issues of all of this, making sure that our assets stay safe and ours."

Oliver nodded, giving an assuring smile to his mother.

"We will work this out."

Moira looked at him, quite surprised by her son's eagerness all of a sudden to be in charge of the company.

"I hope so, Oliver. I have to be honest with you though, it doesn't look good." She stated. "Yes, Ned could find a way to make sure our assets are still ours and that we won't lose them but… The company, Oliver, that's another story."

She paused again.

"I will do my best to hold off any decisions from the board but… The _very worst_ case scenario is that the board finds us unfit for leading the company and they will find another to take our place."

Oliver thought it over.

In the board's eyes, it was still Moira who was the CEO, when in reality it had been Oliver – and Isabel – who had been leading the company for the past months.

What if Oliver could convince the board that he was the best choice for leading the company, that it would be in everyone's best interest that the _new _CEO for Queen Consolidated would be…

**Oliver Queen**.


	29. Ep 28 - We know what we are, but know no

**We know what we are, but know not what we may be**

Oliver had left Moira at QC, with a solid promise that he would find a solution to the growing risk of them losing the company. He hadn't yet told her about the idea he had to bring in front of the board, about making him CEO of Queen Consolidated.

Truth to be told, he wasn't even sure himself if he was right for the role, but he had to try at least, to save _Queen Consolidated_.

Something else he hadn't mentioned to Moira, was that he was on his way to see Lachlan.

He had to go to the bottom with all of this, find out if she had lied to his face when saying she'd keep Isabel alive. He knew that requesting to get proof that Isabel was alive, Lachlan would bring up the fact that she wanted McKenna Hall to join her organisation and Oliver didn't know how to process that.

He knew for sure that McKenna wouldn't only decline, _strongly_ decline but he also knew that she wouldn't survive long in the organisation.

Oliver had been forced to join the organisation for a short period time due to a series of events, and it had nearly killed him. It had taken him a long time to recover and on some level, he still wasn't over what he'd been experienced and been forced to do.

As Oliver made it out of the QC offices, he picked up his phone and called Lachlan. Much to his surprise, she picked up immediately.

"Oliver, Isabel is not dead. I don't know who spread the rumors that she is, but she's alive and safe." She immediately answered, as she'd known he would call and what it would be about.

"I won't take your word for it, Lachlan." Oliver growled. "I need to see it for myself. You have no idea the damage this has done and what it may cause. Tell me where you keep Isabel and I will come there."

"All right." Lachlan said. "We moved her the second we heard about the rumours and with the risk of _anyone_ catching you… I will come get you. Just say when and where."

"Right now. Starling square."

"I will be there shortly."

And the call ended.

The organisation Lachlan was leading, was called **Череп и Кости**, Russian for _Skull and Bones_. The organisation had nothing to do with the infamous secret club of _Ivy League Colleges_, as **Череп и Кости **was far more secret and extremely dangerous.

The organisation's existence, or maybe better described as a brotherhood, was only known to a handful of people – the few people who were part of the brotherhood.

To the rest of the world, **Череп и Кости** was only a legend and a myth, its origin going all the way back to the _Grand Duchy of Moscow_, said to have been founded by _Ivan IV_ or _Ivan the Terrible_ – but no one knew for sure.

Lachlan's mother, Áine Caillech McCreesh was Irish and she had been a high put member of the IRA, part of the most inner circle. She was killed during the bombing in Enniskillen in November, 1987, when Lachlan had been only a few months old.

Lachlan had lived with relatives of her mother's in Scotland since she was a little baby. Lachlan had never heard them speak about her father, as they had no idea who he was.

Áine they did talk about to Lachlan but she could see it made them uncomfortable, most probably thanks to her involvement with the _IRA_ and the fact that it got her killed. Once she was old enough to really understand, it was quite clear that her mother had got involved with _IRA_ after meeting her father.

Lachlan did find out that Áine had met Lachlan's father when she was 17, while on vacation in Amsterdam. She had fallen madly in love and shortly afterwards, she had moved with him to Russia. Her family was shocked, they thought she was far too young and they didn't believe she quite understood who the man she had fallen so in love with was.

Áine stayed in Russia for a few years and she had barely no contact with her family, which made them suspect that she'd got herself into massive trouble or even worse, got herself killed. From the little contact they had though they'd gathered that she and the man had got married and everything had gone to hell after that.

When Áine returned home, she was 24 and a completely different person. Gone was her bubbly, sweet, caring personality; instead she was cold and distant.

It was now she joined the _IRA_ – but her family suspected she had been involved before, as she got accepted so quickly - and within a short period of time, she was part of the most inner circle of the organisation, one of the highest members. Then she went to Russia again, and when she returned she was pregnant with Lachlan. She let her family know that her husband didn't know she was pregnant and that it would have to stay that way.

Lachlan was born in early September 1987 and for the first time in several years, her family saw traces of the Áine they once knew. Áine adored her daughter and she told them she had made plans to leave the _IRA_ and start a new life for her and her daughter. But she still had to be part of _IRA_ and then the bombings in Enniskillen happened and Áine was one of the 12 people who lost their lives.

Áine's family took care of Lachlan for a while but they realized she was in danger if Áine's husband found out that the child existed. So they decided to let family in Scotland take care of Áine's daughter.

Lachlan lived in Scotland until she was 15 and her father had made claim on her. Her family didn't fight him, and soon thereafter she moved to live with her father. Lachlan never saw or heard from her mother's family again, much to her distraught, because she had been happy in Scotland.

She soon forgot all about it, though.

Her father had been ruthless with Lachlan. He had stripped every little bit of her humanity away from Lachlan with his training. Training that nearly killed her, training where she was tortured on several occasions and when she was 16 she took her first life.

One would think that it would've been traumatic for someone that young, but not for Lachlan. She had been forced to learn very early on that her father was the devil and he didn't tolerate any show of emotions what so ever. Therefore, she didn't even hesitate to pull the trigger on the gun when ordered by her father.

Soon enough, Lachlan was as cold and heartless as her father and when she was 18, she joined the _Long Range Desert Group_, part of the _SAS_.

A few years later, she spent a short period of time in _Spetznas_. During one of _Spetznas_' missions in Siberia, Lachlan's father was killed. Shortly after Lachlan was offered to take over as leader of **Череп и Кости** - knowing that was what her father had planned for her, she strongly declined and returned to the _Long Range Desert Group_. She cut all her ties with _Spetznas_ and she, in a way, started her life over with the _SAS_.

Her true involvement with _Spetznas _was discovered however and she was forced to resign from the _SAS_ and she found no other choice than to return fully to _Spetnas_ and become the new leader of **Череп и Кости**.

She also had close ties with _Spetznas_ and other organisations working closely with them. She also made sure to have good relationships with the Russian, Italian and Asian mobs + the local ones in New York (Italian, Russian, Irish) and with a little harsh convincing, she worked her way back into the _SAS_.

At the age of 24, Lachlan was the youngest leader in **Череп и Кости**'s history. Maybe also the most ruthless leader they'd ever had – and that said something.

Oliver didn't know exactly how Lachlan had come to become the leader of **Череп и Кости**, especially since she was a woman and still so young.

From the very little she had told him, she had come this far all thanks to who her parents had been. They had both been ruthless assassins and mercenaries.

From what Oliver had gathered, Lachlan hadn't had much of a choice other than following in her parents' footsteps.

Oliver stood at the town market square, waiting for Lachlan. He was exhausted from everything that was going on and he couldn't stress enough how badly he wanted it to be over. _All of it_.

Moments after, he saw a dark Mercedes-Benz CL65 AMG Coupe – the most expensive model out there – and he knew it was Lachlan.

Only, when the car pulled up and the windows came down, it wasn't Lachlan sitting there.

Instead, Oliver was looking at a young woman who could be no older than 18.

"Mr Queen? Hi, I'm Diana." She smiled innocently.

She spoke in flawless English but Oliver knew for certain she was of Russian origin, working for Lachlan no doubt.

She had dark hair, pulled up in a strict ponytail (Oliver found himself thinking about Felicity right here) and emerald green eyes and soft face features. She was wearing a heavy lace dress with a simple gold chain with a plain gold ring and a unique three band ring - Oliver recognized the ring as a traditional Russian wedding band - attached to it around her neck.

"I'm here in favour for Lachlan." She continued. "I'll take you to the vantage point, near Dun Laoghaire, where Ms McCreesh waits for you and…"

"Okay. Let's go then." Oliver said, circled the car and got in the passenger's seat.

After driving for about 45 minutes, they made it to the vantage point near Dun Laoghaire.

Diana had tried her best to make discussion with Oliver, and he had tried his best to be polite and answer her questions…

But his mind was too clouded by everything going on with _Queen Consolidated_, his family, Misha Smolak and Beatrycze Salomea, Isabel and… Felicity.

Plus, the fact that they had been driving near the area where Felicity had been kept while Smolak had had her captured.

Sure, they were on the other side of Cameron Lake, but it still was close by.

Where Felicity had been injured and Oliver hadn't known if he would find her alive or not… When he finally had found her, he had been so relieved that he'd let everything he felt for her to rise to the surface, only to witness Felicity get worse again…

That too took his toll on him.

Diana parked the car and looked at Oliver, smiling.

"Wait here, Mr Queen. Ms McCreesh will join you shortly. She will take you to the location where Ms Rochev is held." She said, her voice calm and gentle.

"Thank you." Oliver nodded and smiled, gently.

Diana smiled back at him and stepped out of the car.

It didn't take long before Lachlan took her place in the driver's seat, after exchanging a few words with Diana in Russian.

"_Is everything all right_?"

"_Yes. He doesn't talk much. Seemed very troubled._" Pause. "_He's very handsome, tough. Like… extremely handsome._"

Silence.

"_Focus, Diana, please. Does he know where we're going_?"

"_No. I only told him that you're taking him to the location where Ms Rochev is being kept._"

"_Good. You did well, Diana. I'll see you when I get back._"

Lachlan, when stepping into the car, was wearing a black jumpsuit, with a sheer-and-opaque panelled bodice and wide-cut legs.

"Oliver."

Oliver looked at her. Her face was as emotionless as usual, but somehow he could see something in her eyes, this after her short moment talking to Diana. It made Oliver wonder if Lachlan and Diana had something to do with each other, other than Diana working for Lachlan.

"Lachlan. Do you mind telling me where we're going?"

"I would rather you didn't know. Insurance on my part in the future." Lachlan simply stated and started the car again.

They made their way out on the roads again and after driving for some time, Oliver soon noted that they were leaving Dun Laoghaire, making their way towards the Britannia Range area.

Oliver must've dozed off, because when he woke again, he noticed that the car was standing still and the driver's seat was empty. He sat up straight and looked around for Lachlan.

She shortly afterwards opened the car door, having two cups of coffee with her.

"You're awake." She said and got into the car.

She handed Oliver one of the cups.

"It was quite entertaining to watch you, though. You talk in your sleep, are you aware of that?"

Oliver glanced at her, but didn't say anything. He instead took a zip of the coffee, which he needed because he hadn't eaten since lunch and it was now late in the evening. Lachlan gave him a smirk.

"You kept saying her name, you know."

She looked at him. "_Felicity_."

Oliver turned his head to face her. "Did I?"

He tried his best to hide his emotions but he knew they took over and was showing.

"You must really love her." Lachlan said. "The way you said her name, it… It's clear as day that you love her, Oliver."

Another pause.

"I hope you know the danger it will bring the both of you… If you decide to pursue your relationship. I understand you want to be happy, Oliver, but just be… aware of the greater danger. Not only for you, but also for Felicity."

"Don't you think I know that?!" Oliver growled. "Felicity is in the hospital, more or less fighting for her life, because of me. Sure, Misha Smolak might've had some other agenda when he kidnapped her but he found her thanks to me. Maybe she would be better off without me, maybe we won't work but…"

He took a deep breath.

"I'm utterly in love with her and I'd rather _die_ than live without her."

He emptied his coffee mug and then gave Lachlan a harsh look.

"Just because you want to be unhappy, Lachlan… It doesn't mean I have to be."

He opened the car door and got out to get some fresh air. Therefor he didn't see the hurt look on Lachlan's face and the single tear falling down her cheek.


	30. Ep 29 - Tell me what makes a man Wanna g

**Tell me what makes a man Wanna give you all his heart Smile when you´re around and cry when you´re apart**

After Oliver had got enough fresh air, he and Lachlan continued their drive to wherever they were going.

"Are you ready to go?" She had briefly asked him, when he'd got back in the car and Oliver had simply nodded.

Lachlan didn't say much and Oliver wasn't that keen on talking either.

He soon drifted off to sleep once again…

Dr Byrne and nurse Vilma were preparing to wake Felicity up from her medical-induced coma. Nurse Vilma had been monitoring her vitals carefully all day and she had also given Felicity a few antibiotics to prevent infections once she'd woken up. A few hours ago Dr Byrne had decided, by the state of Felicity being so stable, that it was time.

However, since Felicity had been first unconscious for quite some time and then put in the medical-induced coma, Dr Byrne had decided that the procedure would go slow, meaning that they would slowly, under a timeline of a few hours, inject the medications that would wake Felicity up.

This was to prevent stressing Felicity's heart and preventing possible consequences or complications.

Dr Byrne was now monitoring Felicity for a few minutes. When everything was looking alright, he turned to nurse Vilma.

"Nurse Vilma, bring me the medications." He took a key out of his pocket and gave it to her.

Nurse Vilma nodded. "Yes, Dr Byrne."

She went out of the room to find the locked safe in Dr Byrne's office where the medications were held.

Dr Byrne had himself been involved with developing a new medication for waking up coma-patients, together with the _School of Medicine_ at Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland – where he himself had studied many years ago.

With time, the one medication had turned into two; them being injected at the same time in doses and during a set amount of time – depending on how long the patient had been in a coma, other injuries and complications etc.

After years of studies being made, and as many trials been tested, the results were two drugs – _Misneach _and _Intinn_, Irish Gaelic for _heart _and _mind_ - that would wake up the patients easier and they also prevented complications post-comatose state.

Normally, the hospital's medications wouldn't be actually locked in – and especially not in any of the doctors' offices, but these medications were special. They were quite expensive to make – not that finances was exactly a problem for Mater Private – and therefor the medications weren't produced that often and the amount was little.

Dr Byrne went to Dublin himself to get the medications, another reason why the hospital didn't have a large stock of it. There was only a certain amount Dr Byrne was allowed to bring into the country.

Nurse Vilma made it to Dr Byrne's office and the safe.

She admired him especially for being one of those who'd invented these medications. She knew a little of Dr Byrne's time as a medicine student at Trinity College but she had got the impression that something had happened there that had made him want to evolve the medications that were already around, being used for coma patients.

Maybe something had happened to Dr Byrne himself that had made him want to proceed with the creation of _Misneach _and _Intinn_ – or then something had happened to someone close to him. Maybe a girl he fell in love with had fallen ill and been placed into a coma and then something tragic had happened…

This was all in Vilma's imagination, of course.

She stopped herself from day-dreaming some more and carefully picked out the two holders containing the medications.

_It was like the darkened skies had opened above them and the rain was now pouring down heavily, soaking them in seconds._

_It didn't matter though, because everything they could see was each other. The rest of the world blurred around them._

_He stood still, watching her walk barefoot on the soaked grass, and he let out a small laugh when she started to twirl around, her face facing up towards the rain, her eyes closed. Even if her dress was clinging more and more to her body, the little skirt still followed her moves around in the rain and he thought, that it was the most beautiful thing ever._

_After a few more twirls, she stopped and looked at him. Her chest was heaving, her blond curls clustered to her face and shoulders. Her eyes was glittering and her whole face was lit up by the smile on her lips. _

_Oh, how he loved that smile._

_She made a gesture towards him to come join her and he started walking towards her. When he was about to reach her, she gave him a little wink and ran away from him, laughing as she could imagine the stunned or even irritated look on his face._

_Only, he wasn't irritated one bit, not either stunned. He was simply extremely satisfied with how happy she looked and how happy he himself felt. _

_It was all thanks to _her_. _

She was his happy story_._

_After she had run a bit, she stopped and turned to face him. He started slowly walking towards her, a small smile on his face and she started approaching him as well. _

_When there was only a few steps between them, she let out a loud laugh and jumped away from him again. _

_Within seconds, she could feel his strong arms embracing her from behind. She let out a small giggle as she was turned around, now facing him. She squinted through the rain up at him, smiling and blinking a few times so she could see between the rain drops. _

_She carefully lifted her fingers, letting them gently run over his face, cheeks and chin, his stubble rasping under her fingers. Affected by the gentle touch of her fingers, his eyes fell shut. _

_In his turn, he ran his fingers slowly up her waist, continuing up her arms and ending at the curve of her neck. The touch was so light and small but still managed to feel electric-like shocks through her body. _

_His eyes opened again and she was all of a sudden amazed, enchanted by how electric his eyes looked, his blue eyes that had caught her by surprise the very first time she met him. Those blue eyes that always seemed to be seeing _all of her_. _

_He leaned in and placed gentle kisses on her collarbone, a warm shiver ran down her spine when he made his way to her cheek and paused before reaching her lips. He pulled away slightly, looking at her. _

_Those blue eyes that in this moment was looking back at her... The way he looked at her, it seemed as if he was seeing her, _all of her_… for the_ first time_, and it made the breath catch in her throat._

_He carefully and gently brought her face up, facing him and she was once again completely taken away by the way he was looking at her._

"_I love you." He whispered into her ear, as he held her tight._

"_I love you." She whispered back._

_She leaned forward, her lips pressing to his as his hand slipped behind the back of her head, to hold her closer. It was nothing like their previous kisses, this was something completely different._

_When their lips separated, she was so out of breath she let out a small gasp, her heart beating so fast…_

Oliver and Lachlan had been driving for a few hours now. Oliver had been sleeping for the most of the drive – something he knew very well he shouldn't have allowed himself to do but he was surprisingly exhausted – and now he was alert.

Looking out the window, he didn't recognize the area. They seemed to have left the Britannia Range area, or maybe they were on the outskirts. Nevertheless, it was not a part of Britannia Range that Oliver was familiar with, and that annoyed him.

He decided that this game Lachlan was playing with him would stop.

He turned to Lachlan.

"Tell me where we're going Lachlan." He said, his tone short and hard. "I'm done with you acting this secretive about where we're going and what the hell you're doing with Isabel Rochev!"

"I told you, I will tell you everything once we get there." Lachlan replied as shortly. "Which will be soon, so if you could keep yourself in check, Oliver. Even if patience isn't your strong suit."

She gave him a look.

"Your phone has been buzzing non-stop for the past hour… It's getting on my nerves. Mind checking it?"

Oliver took out his phone and found several missed calls from Dr Byrne, Mater Private Hospital and Diggle, plus a few messages from Thea. He realized all of a sudden that it was today Felicity would be woken up from the coma.

What was the reason that both the hospital and Dr Byrne had called him, on top of that Diggle?

Had something happened when they were waking her up? Had there been complications and they had to postpone it?

Or was she already awake and wondering why Oliver wasn't there?

Oliver's head was spinning with thoughts, making him more worried for every second. He decided to text Diggle, as he didn't want risk Lachlan picking up something she could later use against him by calling.

'_Diggle what's happening? Get back to me ASAP. Away on a meeting. _

– _Oliver_'

He then looked at the ones Thea had sent him and he wrote her shortly that he'd had to go out of town on a meeting and it would take until the next morning before he would come back.

Nurse Vilma had made it back to Felicity's room, where Dr Byrne was waiting with a few other of his colleagues.

"Everything go all right?" Dr Byrne asked.

"Yes, no problems at all." Vilma answered, smiling, as she gave back the key.

Then she carefully handed over the holders with _Misneach _and _Intinn_. Dr Byrne gave one of them to his colleague and the other he used to fill a syringe. Vilma took a pair of gloves and carefully put them on, then she went to help Dr Byrne with the medications.

"Right," Dr Byrne stated. "We'll start with medication _Misneach_, inject it in small doses, maximum of five millilitres, over a timeline of 90 minutes.

"Then we'll wait for 60 minutes and look at the patient's vitals and then we'll take medication _Intinn_, injecting it over a timeline of 60 minutes, maximum dose three millilitres."

"Nurse Vilma will then monitor the patient for another 60 minutes and if everything goes well, she will wake up within the next six hours."

"We're here." Lachlan shortly told Oliver as the car came to a stop.

Oliver looked around and saw that they were at an industrial building, which seemed to have been built in the middle of the forest, as there were large trees surrounding the area, with snow-covered mountain tops seen in the far.

Lachlan got out of the car, straightening the fabric on her jumpsuit. She turned to make sure Oliver followed her.

"Come on."

She started walking towards the building, being alert at all times and turning her head back once in a while to make sure Oliver was with them.

When they were about to reach the industrial building, the door opened and out came a – in Oliver's eyes – teen-ager looking young man.

"Miss McCreesh! You made it!" He grinningly said and almost waved to Lachlan.

"Miss Rochev is in sector eight, she's finally co-operating. Dr Wells is to… _thank _for that, I guess."

"She took a pretty bad hit during the last interrogation, Cisco and Caitlin are with her now."

Oliver shot Lachlan a look, like he was saying '_Is this guy serious?'_ and Lachlan just waved him off.

"Thank you for looking after her, Mr Allen." She said. "You, Cisco and Caitlin can return to the headquarters now, me and Mr Queen will take it from here."

The man's eyes got very big when he heard Lachlan mentioning _Mr Queen_ and he turned to Oliver.

"Oh gosh, you're… you're _Oliver Queen_. You're the one who… You were… I mean, it's an honour to meet you, Mr Queen."

It was obvious that the young man was seriously star struck by Oliver.

Before Oliver could say or do anything, Lachlan shot the young man a look that made him freeze and he immediately left.

Oliver looked at Lachlan.

"Who was _that _kid and do his parents know he's working with a lethal assassin?"

Lachlan smirked, at which of Oliver's comments she wasn't sure, as she opened the door to the building and let Oliver in.

"That young genius, as socially awkward he might be, was Barry Allen. He's one of the employees of one of my… associates in Central City."

Oliver shook his head, not realizing how important that meeting with one Barry Allen would come to be in the future…

The procedure with waking Felicity up from the coma was successful and nurse Vilma didn't notice any abnormalities when she was monitoring Felicity the compulsory 60 minutes after the final doses of _Misneach _and _Intinn_. She was working the night shift as well, so she would occasionally go check on Felicity.

| _Four hours later_ |

It was dark in the room, only a few shimmering lights being seen through the folds on the windows, when Felicity slowly opened her eyes, still adjusting to the different light than she was used to. She had been unconscious for several weeks, after all. Or how long had it been, really? She had no sense of time, all she could tell was that it probably was night…

Something was throbbing in her head and she let out a quiet groan. Well, tried to as she couldn't make a sound.

She saw an IV drip connected to her wrist and memories immediately came back…

**Her father abducting her at the Fairmont. **

**She being held in a damp cell, dozing off from time to time. **

**Losing consciousness and waking up on a stretcher somewhere, with that woman watching over her. **

**Faking a seizure and running out in the forest.**

**Being her clumsy old self and getting herself injured.**

**Almost getting caught by those men, but being able to hide away between the rocks.**

**Getting worse again and not knowing what was wrong with her, leaving her terrified.**

**Oliver finding her and everything, nevertheless what was happening with her, seemed good again.**

**Getting worse again, seeing the worried look on Oliver's face, while she was screaming with pain – and then everything turned black…**

She flinched at the memories and she closed her eyes. She felt tired all of a sudden and soon dozed off.

'**Felicity... Please, don't leave me. You can't leave me, I can't lose you. I need you...'**

'**I love you. **_**I love you**_**.' **

**The feeling of someone, **_**his**_**, lips brushing against hers…**

But not before another flashes of memories came to her.

Memories she later on couldn't understand how she could remember, as she had been unconscious or even in a coma at the time – or not even around to hear said discussions…

'**Everyone deserves to be happy, Oliver. Even you, both as Oliver Queen and the Arrow. Felicity is without a doubt your happy future. Just imagine how much worse you would feel if Felicity wasn't in your life at all.'**

'**I'm utterly in love with her and I'd rather **_**die**_** than live without her.'**

_He so often didn't have to say anything with words, she could tell how he was feeling, what he was thinking, _what he was saying_ by looking into her eyes. Safety, passion, intensity, surprise, longing... _Love_. _

_This was everything he was saying, everything he wanted to give her. Everything _she _wanted to give _him_._

"_Promise me this is forever." She said, looking at her, smiling as the rain drops soaked them even more._

_He looked at her, taking her hands and placing them against his chest and then the biggest grin appeared on his face, making her heart flutter._

"_I promise."_

_She gripped at his hair, pulling him closer, so close there was no space between them anymore, and he surprised her by with lifting her up and wrapping her legs around his waist. _

_Their mouths collided together and they were clinging to each other as if the earth was caving beneath them._

_Everything around them became more blurry, the two of them being the only thing in the world that mattered. _


	31. Ep 30 - It'll never break, I will always

**It'll never break, I will always wait till we see it through I will never lie, I will always fight for the core of you And all these words through all these years, just trust what will be Never wanna break and don't you ever change the core of you**

Oliver followed Lachlan into the industrial building and they walked for a moment through a hallway, through another door and up a staircase.

When they reached the top of the stair case, they went left and came into what looked like office spaces. It felt more like a science area, some kind of medical facility, it was very cold and steril.

Lachlan turned to Oliver.

"Wait here." She said.

Oliver nodded, having a feeling that he wouldn't win anything by objecting, even if he wanted to.

He had a bad feeling about all of this.

Not only had the kid he'd met earlier been spooked by Lachlan, not that it surprised him as he knew Lachlan was ice-cold, emotionless and ruthless and people who didn't know her, was often frightened by her but he didn't like the feeling he was getting from the building.

Not to mention, Lachlan had become more and more reserved for every step further into the building they took.

He looked around for a bit and saw a few folders laying on a table. He looked around to see if it was safe to take a look, which it seemed to be, and he walked up to them. They had nothing written on the covers so he flipped one open.

And what he saw made him flinch and take a step back.

There were lots of photos of Felicity in there, Oliver was in a few and even Diggle in some, but mostly they were of Felicity. The photos were taken at Queen Consolidated, both when she was working in the IT department and at Oliver's floor as his "EA".

There were photos of her in her apartment, when she was walking outside in the city, sitting at her go-to coffee shop _Breka Bakery & Café_ with her daily order: a _Caramel Flan Latte_ and an _Almond Croissant Blossom_. It was always the same order and how Oliver knew it, he wasn't sure. Maybe she had told him in one of her _many_ rabbles.

There were photos of her at the Fairmont gala and Oliver felt sick to the stomach. Someone had been there that night, taking these photos…

He looked again at the photos and he was stunned by how beautiful she looked. At the most of them she was smiling, laughing even but there was one where she looked incredibly sad and Oliver knew instantly when this photo had been taken…

But what made Oliver completely lose it, was seeing photos of a Felicity in a small brick cell and laying on a stretcher with an IV drip attached to her arm.

This was the night she had escaped, when Oliver had met with Smolak and Salomea. The night he almost had lost Felicity but on the same time been blown away by how strong she was. She had escaped from her captures and she had fought death, she _was_ fighting death right now.

He put the folder back together and stepped back.

Whatever was going on, whatever the reason Lachlan had for bringing him here, it went far past Isabel and her well-being… if she still was alive.

It had something to do with Misha Smolak being Felicity's father, all of this had to do with Felicity.

Oliver took a deep breath to still the growing rage in his chest.

Whatever was going on, however Lachlan was included in this, he would stop her and whoever else was involved. He would kill them all before they got to Felicity.

He picked his phone up and called Diggle. He, _they_, had to be prepared for whatever, whoever was coming.

Lachlan had gone to sector 8, where Barry had informed her Isabel was held. She hoped that the interrogation had gone well and that Isabel still was alive. She could only imagine what would happen, what Oliver would do, if that wasn't the case.

"Ms McCreesh, you're back!" She heard someone say behind her and she turned, to meet Cisco looking at her. "We weren't expecting you so quickly, did everything go well?"

"Yes." Lachlan answered shortly.

"I thought I told Mr Allen that he, you and Ms Snow could return to the headquarters."

"Yeah, sure, he told us that already. Caitlin is back with Dr Wells and patching up Ms Rochev." Cisco said, stuttering a bit. "We'll be on our way as soon as they're finished."

"Good." Lachlan said.

"Is he here?"

Cisco froze, right there on the spot, which told Lachlan than the answer was _yes_.

"I will go see him then. Now, get out of my face."

Cisco nodded and with stammering steps he walked away from her. Lachlan looked after him and continued her walk.

Oliver had got a hold of Diggle and he was now trying to explain to his partner where he'd disappeared to.

"Oliver where the hell are you! I've been trying to get hold of you all day and night, so has your mother and sister. Not to mention Dr Byrne. They're waking Felicity up today, man, I thought you'd remember that." Diggle said loudly, clearly giving Oliver a piece of his mind.

"I'm well aware Diggle, but I couldn't do anything when Lachlan decided to drive me to…"

"Exactly where did she drive you to?"

"I'm not exactly sure. Right now we're at some industrial building somewhere in Britannia Range. Not the main issue right now though, Diggle." Oliver said.

"I found something… Whoever Lachlan is working with from here, they've been keeping a close eye on Felicity… Documenting everything about her, even when Smolak had her captured. There's a folder and… We thought Smolak had been watching her closely, there's _nothing_ in comparison to this."

He heard Diggle sigh loudly. "There's someone more after Felicity? What's going on here exactly? I would've believed it if they'd gone through her to get to you but…"

"I don't know. Lachlan will be back any minute, I'll try to look into it then. Meanwhile… I need you to make sure no one un-authorized gets to Felicity. Move her if you have to, she's your priority right now, Diggle."

"I'm on it." Diggle said. "What will you do, Oliver? You can't let Lachlan know that you're… aware of what's going on there."

"I'm not even sure she's aware of it." Oliver said, thinking about what Lachlan had told him in the car.

_I hope you know the danger it will bring the both of you… If you decide to pursue your relationship. I understand you want to be happy, Oliver, but just be… aware of the greater danger. Not only for you, but also for Felicity._

Suddenly it hit him. She **had** been warning him. She had been warning him about something more dangerous than Misha Smolak and Beatrycze Salomea. Something, _someone_ else was coming and it would be **the greater danger**.

He then realized what had to be done and he hurried to tell Diggle.

**Two days later**

Felicity was still in the hospital and according to the few people she had seen since she had woken up about 24 hours earlier, she wouldn't be getting out of there anytime soon.

Before then she had been slipping in and out of sleeping, which she had been told was a side-effect from the drugs used to wake her up from the coma. _Medical induced coma_. Felicity still couldn't believe she had been in such bad shape that putting her into a coma had been the only option. She didn't remember much from before, just snippets… Another side-effect but her doctor had been quite positive that she soon would remember everything.

The thing was, though… Felicity didn't know if she wanted to remember _everything_, when the little things she did remember, made her feel uncomfortable and stressed.

Why she had to stay yet at the hospital, she had no idea, she felt fine and all she wanted was to get out in the fresh air. See people other than Dr Byrne and nurse Vilma. These two always seemed to come to Felicity's room together, but nevertheless Felicity liked them both.

Nurse Vilma was young and sweet, very caring about Felicity and asking constantly if she was feeling all right. Felicity did feel like there was something more nurse Vilma had wanted to tell her at several occasions… but the kind nurse never did tell her.

Laying in a hospital bed all day, mostly alone, left Felicity to think about all kinds of things… Mostly, understandably, she thought about her abduction. Sometimes she let her mind go to the gala at the Fairmont… but that made her think of Oliver.

Why hadn't he had come by to visit her? Did he even know she was awake?

Considering how things had been left between them, _what had happened_, she had imagined him rushing through the door at several occasions…

Or was that the reason why he hadn't showed up yet? Because of what had happened?

She then immediately left those thoughts, thinking that he was probably busy with either Queen Consolidated or his Arrow business. Still, it left a nagging feeling inside of her, that didn't quite leave her…

"Are you sure you feel comfortable, Ms Smoak?" Nurse Vilma asked Felicity for the millionth time.

"Yes, I assure you, I'm fine." Felicity smiled gently, her head slowly throbbing from a growing headache. "You don't need to check up on me, I'm good."

"Oh don't be silly." Nurse Vilma said. "It's my job to check up on you."

"Then you shouldn't worry so much." Felicity said and laid back carefully in her bed.

"But Ms Smoak, you don't understand…" Nurse Vilma said. "You're one of our few miracle patients."

"You went through a very traumatic experience, and your life was hanging on a thread… If Mr Queen and Mr Diggle hadn't brought you in when they did, you could've died."

She paused.

"And if you had, God forbid, died… you wouldn't have been the only one."

Felicity looked at her, her eyes big.

_What was she talking about?_

"I don't understand."

Nurse Vilma smiled gently. "Mr Queen. I know you're wondering why he hasn't been here to see you but…"

Felicity bit her lip and her eyes fell to the ground. Nurse Vilma came up to Felicity and grabbed her hand carefully.

"That night when he brought you in… I've never seen someone so… torn and broken, in so much pain as he was. He was absolutely terrified for your life. Mr Diggle had to sign you in."

"Once you were out of the worst danger, he never slept, he just kept watching you and… Felicity, he never left your side for the first two weeks you were here. And if he did have to leave, he immediately came back. _He came back_."

"That was then. When I was unconscious and everyone _feared for my _life." Felicity shook her head, closing her eyes.

"What should that tell me?"

"To me, it's clear as day that he loves you."

It wasn't Nurse Vilma who'd said that. There was no doubt in her mind who'd said it but… Felicity's eyes shot open. _No, it couldn't be._


	32. Ep 31 - I don't believe that things are

**I don't believe that things are said and done I only hope there's still time to be the one We could work it out if only you let me**

It was a few days later.

Oliver had come back to Starling City early the same morning. Lachlan had dropped him off at Verdant and she had left as quickly.

The whole drive from Britannia Range to Starling had been awkward and silent. Oliver hadn't got his head around what Lachlan had been doing at the industrial building, when she'd left him and he had found the folder with all those photos of Felicity.

He had caught a glimpse of Isabel though, when the scientist kid Barry Allen and his colleagues had moved her to a van, which would take her to Central City. She had looked… pale and frail. A sole shadow of the independent, fearless woman Oliver had learned

Isabel had seen Oliver too, he knew it, but he hadn't given her much thought after that.

This had been moments before Lachlan had declared they were going back to Starling, no questions asked. He knew she had seemed more on edge than usual, fuming, and she had only growled at him that they were leaving.

Oliver had been able to get more information about the folder with the photos, though. He had looked at one of the documents that had been placed in a pocket of some sort in the back and from it, with a little help from Caitlin Snow, one of Barry Allen's colleagues, he had got a name or alias on whoever kept the file. _HaDos_.

When Oliver had come to Verdant this morning, he had gone down to the lair, only to find Diggle there. He was busy typing on the computers when the steps of someone coming down the stairs

"You look like crap, buddy…!" Diggle had blurted out.

"Yeah well… I haven't slept much." Oliver mumbled, his eyes drawing to the bunk bed that was placed further in.

"I can tell you're exhausted." Diggle said and Oliver simply nodded, starting to slowly move towards the bed. "Oliver, listen…"

Diggle's voice interrupted his walk. Oliver turned around.

"I went to see Felicity at the hospital a few days ago. Dr Byrne gave me the green light… I went to see her and she was… Not only is she starting to comprehend the amount of cruelty that happened to her, it will take some time for her to recover from… No, this is worse. She is _devastated_, Oliver."

Diggle paused, maybe to see Oliver's reaction which was showing to be useless, Oliver didn't show one emotion at this point. He only listened to what Diggle had to say.

"I have seen Felicity upset but this is a whole new level… She's devastated, absolutely heartbroken. She's only a shadow of her former bubbly, smiling, babbling self. I'm seriously worried about her."

Oliver didn't say anything, just kept looking at Diggle, waiting for him to continue his story. Diggle sighed, taking a breath before he continued.

"And do you know the reason why she's spending her days in that hospital bed, in tears for most of the day? _You_."

"_You_, Oliver, is making Felicity feel like this. She's waiting for you to literally run through the door to her room, and she's waited for days already. She had in fact imagined you'd be there when she woke up from the coma. But when you weren't, and I've tried explaining to her you've had other… things going on, she… She's falling apart, Oliver and… She may not be around much longer…"

He had watched Oliver and Felicity, his two friends, run around each other like ping pong balls for two years now… He had been frustrated at times, because he knew that if they kept acting like this, it would explode in their faces…

He had known immediately the day Felicity came down to the lair, terrified and with her shirt covered in Oliver's blood after he had been shot by Moira that Felicity cared deeply for Oliver. With time, it was clear as day that she had feelings for him, that she was _in love_ with him.

Oliver hadn't seen it, maybe because he had been hung up on Laurel still or because he was too focused on _The List_ or finding out what _The Undertaking_ was. When the tragedy had stricken and Tommy's life had been one of the many lost in the horrific act, Diggle had seen a change in Oliver. The next day he had been gone. Diggle and Felicity had found him eventually but it had been a changed Oliver who returned to Starling City. He made a vow not to kill anymore, to honour Tommy's memory…

But then Felicity had been taken by the Count and Oliver had _in fact_ killed again. After that, it was like something had clicked within him and Diggle had slowly started to see that maybe his friend wasn't as blind after all. Maybe Oliver had known Felicity had feelings for him, maybe he had feelings for _her_.

It most likely had hit him like a lightning bolt, because Diggle had never seen anyone as distraught and in pain as Oliver had been when Felicity had gone missing, when they finally had found her…

However, Diggle had also realized how painful it was for Oliver too, to admit this to himself. During their talk at Diggle and Lyla's house, when Oliver had admitted that he indeed loved Felicity but he was afraid to act on these feelings because he was afraid what the consequences would be… But if he didn't act _now_, he would lose Felicity anyway.

"You may do whatever you want with what I'll be telling you next, man. You might just ignore it, you may act on it. _It's your decision_. Just know, that Felicity didn't mean to tell me, it just came out. She's known about it for a long while and she never gave it a second thought because she was happy here in Starling and she had the work the three of us do here… But then this whole mess with her abduction happened…"

Diggle didn't know if he really had the right to tell Oliver the following piece of information, especially since Felicity more or less had forbidden him to tell anyone, _especially _Oliver… But Diggle was afraid that if he didn't tell Oliver, if Oliver didn't act on whatever he was feeling for Felicity but holding back, she would be lost to him. _Forever_.

And Diggle, on a personal note, wasn't ready to let Felicity go, she was after all one of his closest friends and he had yet to tell her that he was going to be a dad.

"Here it goes. Felicity has been offered a position at the University of Padova's _PhD programmes_. She's accepted the position and she'll leave as soon as Dr Byrne gives her the green light to go home. Which is any day now, I'm guessing."

Diggle looked at his friend, seeing the news he'd received sink in, before he hit with the final shot.

"Oliver… _She's moving to Italy_."

Oliver's lips parted a bit, he flinched and crashed against the nearest concrete pillar. _There it was_.

Oliver _reacted_. His before blunt face expression now changed immediately to a whole whirlwind of emotions, as he stood frozen.

Diggle, despite the slight guilt he felt for bringing this on Oliver now when it was clear he was already weak, also felt proud. He had finally got a reaction out of Oliver, and some reaction it was too!

He decided to not say anything more, and Oliver didn't have the words to say anything by the looks by it so he simply gave Oliver a nod and walked out of the foundry by the alleyway entrance.

He looked at the time and smiled to himself. He and Lyla would go to their first doctor's appointment today, maybe they would see a scan of their baby… Nevertheless, it was exciting times.

Oliver didn't know how long he'd stood against the concrete pillar and he didn't care. All he knew was that the second Diggle had started talking about Felicity getting offered to study at the University of Padova's _PhD programmes_, time started to freeze. It completely stopped when Diggle uttered the words, '_She's moving to Italy_'.

It seemed so unreal, like a dream, but Diggle had in fact told him that Felicity, _his Felicity_, was moving to Italy. And he was to blame. Bigtime. No one other than himself.

Oliver had already felt… incomplete, was the best way to describe it, for missing

It had been in the back of his mind all the time while he had been with Lachlan in Britannia Range… _Of course it had. _

He knew that Felicity would've woken up from the coma and he had promised himself he'd be there, but then Lachlan had brought him to Britannia Range for whatever reasons – reasons he still not knew about, he had gone with her to get proof that Isabel was alive and it had become something totally different.

He had not only missed Felicity waking up, he had also missed the talks he and Felicity most probably would've had at her bedside, laughing and smiling… Felicity slowly recovering as Oliver cared for her and maybe, with time, Oliver would finally have the courage in his heart to tell her _everything_.

Everything that he made her feel, how the way he looked on the world had completely changed since he walked up to her cubicle at QC's IT department, how she was the light that kept pulling him through the darkness…

How her impossible ramblings made him smile, how he secretly loved how she talked back at him even if he growled at her, that he wouldn't change the whirlwind that was Felicity Smoak and the utter joy she had brought him for anything in the world…

How he couldn't live or even _breathe_ without her…

That he would show her this – how much she meant to him – for the rest of his life, as long as he lived, if she let him.

That he was utterly, hopelessly and completely in love with her.

It was clear as day now, Oliver couldn't let Felicity leave for Italy without him seeing her.

He had to see her nevertheless of the gigantic revelation he had just had, he had to see for himself that she was all right, safe and… _alive_.

He knew she might decline him visiting but he had to try. _He had to._

He had completely forgotten that he had come down to the lair in the first place to sleep. Instead he had his eyes set on Mater Private and he was already on the phone with Dr Byrne as he got on his motorcycle.

"Dr Byrne? Hi, it's Oliver. Queen."

"Mr Queen! It's been a while since I've heard from you."

"Yes, I've been… Out of town. That's not why I'm calling. I'm calling because of…"

"-Ms Smoak, I presume?"

"Yes…" Oliver slowly said. "She's still at the hospital, right? My friend, John Diggle, said that you might considering releasing her…"

"Yes, you assume right, Mr Queen. Ms Smoak is still at Mater Private and I have no plans of releasing her just yet, I'm keeping her under reservation. She's still recovering from her injuries, the aftermath of the coma, to mention a few. Are you planning to come visit her?"

"Yes, I am actually. May I come see her right now? It's quite urgent."

"It is past visiting hours, Mr Queen… But I have a feeling you won't take no for an answer so… I will let the staff on the ward and Ms Smoak know that you're on your way."

"Actually…" Oliver said, as he parked the bike at a florist's boutique, _Summerhill Floral Boutique_. "Could it be a surprise? I want to surprise her…"

"All right…" Dr Byrne said. "However… I feel like I have to warn you, Mr Queen. Ms Smoak might not be as you remembered. She's taking everything quite hard."

"Thank you, Dr Byrne." Oliver said, knowing that he may be the reason why Felicity was, as Diggle had put it, a _shadow of her former self. _

He hurried into the boutique and bought a bouquet with the finest peonies, which he knew was Felicity's favorite flower, in various shades of pink.

He then stopped at a chocolate boutique he knew Felicity loved, _Chocolate Art_ and picked up a box with assorted chocolate truffles he knew Felicity had a special sweet tooth for.

He knew very well that Felicity might tell him to hit the road and she could very well decline his wish to see her.

Fifteen minutes later, Oliver arrived at Mater Private and he had never been this nervous in his whole life. He felt like he was fifteen years old again and he was going on his first date. Sure, he had his reasons to be nervous but in his gut he knew at the same time, that everything would be different from now on.

He had finally come to terms with his feelings and what or _who _he wanted in his future. It was clear as the brightest, sunniest Summer day that Felicity played a great deal in that future.


	33. Ep 32

p class="Kapitel-citat"span lang="EN-IE"Here's where it changes br / Here's to our brand new start, I won't be waiting for nothing. br / I'll mend the broken parts. br / Pick up the pieces/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE" span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE" span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"When Diggle and Lyla stepped through the door to their apartment, they could've never been happier. The doctor's appointment had gone perfectly, where the doctor, a nice lady by the name of Dr Winter, had determined that Lyla was 22 weeks pregnant and the due date for their baby had been set: em20 Aprilem./span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"They had also been able to see their little bundle of joy with the help of the ultrasound and the instant it had showed up on the screen, Lyla's eyes had filled with tears and Diggle had got the biggest grin on his face. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Dr Winter had only stepped back to watch one of her favorite moments with being an OB-Gyn, the happiness of the couples who saw their child on the sonogram. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She also knew a bit about Diggle and Lyla's history as a couple – she had treated Lyla before – and therefor she was a bit extra happy for this couple. It had been a roller-coaster, but they were finally where they wanted to be.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Dr Winter had, even though she knew about Lyla's job with A.R.G.U.S., been concerned about the situation of Lyla's job and the dangers it held. Therefor she had let Lyla know that she shouldn't put herself or the baby under stress, so she was advised to desk-duty only. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Yeah sure, try tell Amanda Waller that one of her field agents have to be signed on desk-duty for the next few months because she's knocked up!" Lyla had argued, meaning there was no way that it would work. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Don't worry, Dr Winter, I will make sure she stays put." Diggle had said quickly, putting his hand on Lyla's shoulder to calm her down.span/p  
>div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"hr align="center" size="2" width="100%" div  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Now, back at the apartment, Lyla had realized that she wasn't really fit for field jobs at A.R.G.U.S. anymore, since she was pregnant and being a field agent was tough, hard and not least, dangerous. She would never forgive herself if she let anything happen to her baby because she was too stubborn to handle desk-jobs.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I will let Waller know that I want to be re-assigned for the next few months and that I then will go on my maternal leave." She said, smiling at Diggle.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Diggle looked at her, looking a bit stunned. He hadn't thought Lyla would give in so easily, because she loved her job and she was damn good at it.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Are you sure? I mean, you love your job and you're great at it…"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I emdo emlove it and I'm very good at what I do but…" Lyla started and leaned in towards Diggle. "Johnny, I won't risk the health of our baby just because I'm stubborn." /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She winked at him. "I guess, I will be the one sitting at home at night, being scared for emyour emsafety now."/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Diggle smiled lightly as he nodded, remembering his discussion earlier with Oliver. The one where he had broken the news about Felicity's decreasing health and her possible move to Italy. If Diggle knew Oliver right, he would set all his focus on Felicity and put his vigilante-side at pause…span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Lyla noticed the worried look on his face. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Johnny what's wrong?"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I just… I told Oliver about Italy… That Felicity might be moving to Italy…" Diggle said and Lyla gave him a look. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I know, there was not my place but… I have watched those two run around each other for so long and considering everything that's happened lately…"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"He paused, flashes of memories coming to him as he remembered the long time he and Oliver had spent in that forest, searching for Felicity.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE""Oliver. I know you don't want to think about this right now, neither do I but... From what they... Smolak and Salomea told you, Felicity's condition can be..." span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE""We have no idea what kind of state she will be in, what kind of injuries she might have-"span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE"Diggle had, just like Oliver, been worried sick about Felicity that night. span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE""I can't think like that. Not right now. Our first and only priority right now is to find Felicity."span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE""We will find her, don't worry."span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE""I'm coming with you. I ca... I can't leave behind, knowing she could be... I have to make sure she's safe. I can't-"span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"emspan lang="EN-IE""Digg... If that really is Felicity... I don't know what to do if..."span/em/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Oliver had been hiding it very well but he forgot more often than not, that Diggle knew him better than anyone and that he was able to see through him. He had been utterly destroyed by the fact that Felicity was missing, that she had been abducted at a location where Oliver himself had been, only Oliver hadn't been there to protect her. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"He blamed himself.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"They hadn't talked about it, as they had been too busy finding Smolak and Salomea and at latest Oliver's mystery trip to Britannia Range, but Diggle knew Oliver still blamed himself for everything that had happened to Felicity. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"In Oliver's world, it was emhis emfault Felicity had been kidnapped at the Fairmont Gala, emhis/em fault that she had been trapped in a dungeon for several days, emhis/em fault that she had been drugged, emhis /emfault that she had been in such a bad shape when they'd found her, emhis/em fault that her life had been hanging by a thread, emhis /emfault that he hadn't been able to help her more…/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Lyla, you didn't see him during these past weeks. He was an absolute wreck, and today when I told him about Felicity possibly going to Italy… He broke."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Diggle understood that helplessness; not being able to help someone you loved, not being able ease their pain. He had felt that too. Not too long ago actually, when he had been searching for Lyla in Russia…span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I get that Oliver might push back anything resembling feelings for Felicity because of emwhat he doesem but… He loves Felicity, just like she loves him. emI'm sure of it/em."/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Johnny…" Lyla slowly said, putting her hand under his arm. "I know you care for both of them and I know you want to help but…" She smiled lightly. "I think you might have to sit this one out, let them come to terms with what they are and how they feel about each other.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE" "Oh come on!" Diggle gave her a look and Lyla returned it.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""You know what I mean. You told me earlier how distraught Oliver seemed to be when you mentioned Italy. He might act on it." She paused. "Correction. He emwillem act on it."/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""What makes you so sure?" Diggle asked.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE" "Because he loves her, Johnny. You said so yourself."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Yes but what if he decides that he can't love her emandem be the Arrow?" Diggle argued. "Oliver is fighting a war and, as you know, it scrapes off little pieces of your soul…"/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I know…" Lyla smiled gently. "Also when fighting a war… you need someone to remind you of who you are, not this thing you are becoming." She leaned in against Diggle's broad shoulders. "Sometimes, you have to realize that you can stare down death with something to live for or not. Something to live emforem…emis better/em."/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Diggle looked down at her, amazed how smart this woman was and how incredibly lucky he was who was able to have her in his life. She was the love of his life and she was now expecting his child. emTheirem child. How could he be this lucky?/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Lyla noticed him looking at him and she grinned, touching his cheek. "Stop it, you goofball!"span/p  
>div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"hr align="center" size="2" width="100%" div  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Oliver had arrived at Mater Private. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"When arriving at the hospital he had let the nurse, Siobhan, know down at the reception in the lobby know he was expected at the ICU, to see Felicity. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Hi. I'm Oliver Queen." Oliver had greeted the nurse. "I'm here to visit Felicity Smoak, she's a patient here, at the ICU."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Siobhan had been reluctant to allowing him to go up there.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"They were still going back and forth whether Oliver indeed was allowed to the ICU.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Sir, it's way past visiting hours and these are very strict at the ICU. Also, it's a busy ward and I doubt the staff there have time looking after you."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I have already spoken with Dr Byrne and he gave me the green light." Oliver argued right back, leaving out the typical 'emDid I mention that I'm Oliver Queen?em'. /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"He had a feeling that wouldn't impress Nurse Siobhan.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I don't care what Dr Byrne allowed you to do or not, you have to have permission from the senior nurse. Dr Byrne knows this."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Oliver sighed. "Fine. Who's the senior nurse then?"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Nurse Sadlier." Siobhan replied shortly. Her eyes then flew to the bouquet and box of chocolates. "You can't bring that up to the ICU. Due to infection control and hygiene requirements."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I'll let Nurse Sadlier decide that." Oliver said shortly. "Could you tell me where I can find Nurse Sadlier… empleaseem?"/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Siobhan snorted and Oliver was very close to losing his temper. How much was he supposed to take? span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"This woman could be a bit more polite, she was working at a hospital! She was basically the first person of staff people would see when they came here… Oliver wouldn't like to meet her span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"But then she answered him.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Go up to the ICU, go through the doors and then immediately go right. Nurse Sadlier's office will be there. Her room number is 0310."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Thank you." Oliver said and smiled genuinely.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"He made his way towards the elevators and made his way to the ICU. Once he came there, he went the same direction as Siobhan had said. He found Nurse Sadlier's office and he knocked on the door.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Come in!" He heard a voice behind the closed door. He opened it and stepped in. "Nurse Sadlier? Excuse me for disturbing you, I'm…"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Oliver Queen." Nurse Sadlier said. "I know who you are, Mr Queen."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She watched him for a moment. "You've made quite a name of yourself here on the ICU during the past few weeks, watching over Ms Smoak..."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE" "Yes…" Oliver nodded slowly. "I was hoping I would be allowed to see Ms Smoak tonight…" He paused and his eyes fell to the floor. "It's… I know it's past visitors' hours but… It's really important that I get to see her tonight…"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I understand, Mr Queen. I've found enough of my nurses day-dreaming about what's got you to watch over her side for the past weeks, when they really should've been caring for our patients."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""However… Ms Smoak hasn't been feeling good the past few days and I wonder if you showing up now will help her at all." span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""You'll have to leave those here." She gave him a firm look, noticing the flowers and chocolates. "And after that, I'll bring you to see Ms Smoak."span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Oliver inhaled sharply, a wave of relief rushing over him. "Thank you, Nurse Sadlier." He put down the bouquet of peonies and the box of assorted chocolate truffles and followed Nurse Sadlier out of her office to Felicity's room.span/p  
>div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"hr align="center" size="2" width="100%" div  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Felicity hadn't been sleeping well during the past few nights. She had barely slept anything to be honest, as she kept having these weird dreams that left her… emconfusedem and emin pain/em. She didn't even remember the dreams, only short flashes that by the time she woke up, had vanished into blurry blobs she could make no sense of whatsoever. /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Except for the ones she did remember.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She found herself remembering seeing her mother, actually talking to her. emWhatem they had been talking about, Felicity couldn't remember and she wasn't sure she wanted to. Seeing her mother, even if it was just in her dreams, was still painful. It had been so many years since Elena had passed away, and it still hurt. Felicity hadn't got over it as she had believed…/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She also had a vivid memory of Oliver. He had been standing right in front of her, with this tormented look on his face that made Felicity's heart break… He hadn't seen her or heard when she had been trying to talk to him. Around them, they skies had been pitch dark and all of it had had a spooky feeling about it.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Felicity closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Why was she thinking about him, it only made her feel worse! No, she wouldn't think about him, not right now when she was struggling to recover…span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Thinking about Oliver hurt. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Be real, Felicity…" She mumbled to herself. "You don't emhate emhim." /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She had realized, that even if it broke her heart thinking about him, she still loved him as much as before. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Without her noticing, tears had appeared in her eyes and she quickly dried them. This was what she hated most, that thinking about Oliver made her feel so much pain but also make her so conflicted, she didn't know half of the time what she was feeling. She knew she loved him hopelessly, emhow could she notem, but the fact that she had yet to see him – instead of just hearing stories from Nurse Vilma that he had been staying by her side 24/7 when she had been unconscious and how broken her had been… /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"'Once you were out of the worst danger, he never slept, he just kept watching you and… Felicity, he never left your side for the first two weeks you were here. And if he did have to leave, he immediately came back. He came back'span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"It hurt.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"It had already made her tell Diggle about her being accepted to a highly exclusive and well-known emPhD programmeem at the University of Padua, Italy and that she was now thinking about accepting. /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Actually, she had already accepted it, it was the first thing she had done when she got the acceptance letter. Getting to study at one of the most famous, well-known universities in the world… She would've been crazy to turn it down… span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"But she couldn't tell Diggle that, he had looked shocked enough when she'd told him she was thinking about moving to Italy.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE" span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"All of a sudden, she heard the door opening and Nurse Sadlier, the senior nurse of the ICU department, was standing in the doorway.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Felicity, good morning." She said gently. "How are you feeling?"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I'm okay." Felicity replied back. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"This was odd. Nurse Sadlier never came to check up on her emjust like thatem. She always had a reason, like giving Felicity her meds or checking her vitals or drawing blood… She never made these random visits asking about her emwell-being/em./span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Then she realized… emHe was here. em/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Felicity, you have every right to say no but…" She paused, eyeing Felicity carefully. "There is someone who would very much like to see you." She smiled. "He's been quite resistant."span/p  
>div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"hr align="center" size="2" width="100%" div  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Oliver was walking a few steps after Nurse Sadlier, as she carefully knocked on the door to Felicity's room and stepped in. Oliver waited outside, a request made firmly by Nurse Sadlier. If Felicity wasn't feeling well enough or she otherwise was of weak nature, Oliver wasn't allowed to see her. Oliver had wanted to argue but he knew better. He had already pushed enough by this point to get this far, only standing outside her door.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Nurse Sadlier turned to him. "Wait here, Mr Queen. I will see how Ms Smoak is doing. If I see any signs, however small or insignificant they may seem, that she's not well… You're not allowed to see her. Do I make myself clear?"span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""Yes, Nurse Sadlier." Oliver nodded. Really, he wanted to shout that emNo!em It wasn't alright that he was kept from seeing the woman he loved, someone he had been worrying sick about for the past few weeks, someone who now might leave him…/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Maybe it was just as well it took a moment longer than expected, because Oliver's heart was beating so hard. With every reason. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"This was it, Oliver had slowly come to realize, as he stood waiting with This was emthe moment emhe had to… well, prove himself to Felicity. To himself. /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Felicity wasn't expecting it, most likely, maybe she hadn't even thought about him… span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"But he had sure enough been thinking about her. Enough to make up his mind about her and what his future with her was or would be.span/p  
>div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"hr align="center" size="2" width="100%" div  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"Nurse Sadlier noticed her reaction and she stepped into the room, closing the door behind her.span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE""I… I…" Felicity stammered and she felt the tears appearing in her eyes again. span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"This was ridiculous! It was strongOliverstrong! Oliver who she considered her best friend, partner, emcrime-fighting/em partner… Oliver who she knew better than anyone. Oliver who she had been dreaming about, Oliver who had come to save her… /span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"strongspan lang="EN-IE"Oliver had saved her life.span/strongspan lang="EN-IE" She wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him. She had no right to be so angry with him, not when… Not when everything she'd wanted for the past days, was to see him. Because seeing him would make everything better./span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal"span lang="EN-IE"She took a deep breath and looked at Nurse Sadlier. "Let him in."span/p 


	34. Ep 33

Sometimes, reaching out and taking someone's hand is the beginning of a journey  
>At other times, it is allowing another to take yours<p>

"Felicity. Like I said, you don't have to let him in… But he's been very resistant and I doubt he will take no for an answer."

Nurse Sadlier couldn't help but smile a little, as she know understood why her staff, female staff, had been day-dreaming about Oliver Queen and trying to figure out what his and Felicity's story was. It was clear as day to anyone with eyes that Felicity was in love with Oliver and that Oliver was more than smitten with the blonde beauty, which was an ever bigger understatement.

She watched Felicity carefully, as the young woman had an inner struggle with herself about letting Oliver into her room or now. Her blue eyes tearing up was a sign of that.

"Oh Felicity… What is wrong, I can see you want to let him in… Why do you look so sad, tormented?"

Felicity looked up at her.

"You wouldn't understand." Felicity whispered. "It's complicated… Like, ten ways to Sunday, complicated."

"I see." Nurse Sadlier replied slowly. "What would you have me tell Mr Queen then?"

"I… I…" Felicity stammered and she felt the tears appearing in her eyes again. As a defence mechanism, she shut them close.

This was ridiculous! It was Oliver!

Oliver who she considered her best friend, partner, crime-fighting partner…

Oliver, who had changed her life… Changed her life for the better.

Oliver who she knew better than anyone. Okay, maybe it was a tie between her and Diggle…

Oliver, who had opened up her heart in such ways she never had believed was possible.

Oliver who she had been dreaming about.

Oliver who had come to save her.

She wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him. She had no right to be so angry with him, not when she really didn't know why she was angry, not when… Not when everything she'd wanted for the past days, was to see him.

She took a deep breath and looked at Nurse Sadlier.

"Let him in."

Nurse Sadlier nodded, turning around and walking out of the room. Felicity watched her, feeling her heart rate go up, the slight panic she had felt ever since Nurse Sadlier had told her Oliver was here, raising within her.

Oliver, who had saved her life.

Oliver… Who she loved. The true love of her life.

Everything would be fine. She kept repeating those world to herself, trying to calm her speeding heart and the carefully-turned-into-violent-whirlwinds butterflies that were stirring around in her belly. Seeing him would make everything better.

Oliver was nervous. Like really nervous.

He hadn't felt this nervous since he'd been fifteen years of age, taking Laurel on their first date. However, this was nothing like that… Because he had never been true to himself – or Laurel – about his feelings for her. He had felt strongly for her, yes, even loved her at least at some point but…

Well, everyone knew how that had ended.

They had tried to give them another chance, when Oliver had returned from Lian Yu the second time, but the aftermaths of what had happened five months earlier – the destruction of the Glades but _most of all _Tommy's death – made it impossible for them to take a step forward. Laurel was too caught up in grieving Tommy and Oliver felt too much guilt for letting his best friend die.

It had also been too painful for them to be together, as Tommy was an ever-returning factor. So they ended it. He and Laurel were finished.

He didn't even know why he was thinking about Laurel right now… He hadn't even seen her since the Fairmont gala, where she had been… not herself.

Sure, Laurel had always known how to have a good time but seeing her like that, made Oliver wonder if she had problems with alcohol. Whether she chose to address it or not, alcoholism was in her family as her father was a recovering alcoholic.

Detective Lance had taken to the bottle when Sara had – presumably – died and Oliver had sort of got the impression that it had been pretty bad. Laurel, in her turn, had lost Tommy, she had suffered a traumatic experience that could leave anyone, even someone as strong as Laurel, in pieces.

Oliver shook his head, forcing the thoughts of his best friend from his mind. It was still painful, thinking about his dead best friend.

Now, standing outside Felicity's room, his heart beating really fast and he felt dizzy from time to time… This was a whole other level of being nervous. Something he had never experienced before.

Something he on the other hand did know, without a single doubt, was how he felt about Felicity. And he wasn't going to let her slip away again. At least not until she knew how he felt about her.

All of a sudden, the door to Felicity's room opened and Nurse Sadlier stepped out.

Oliver took a small step back and looked at her, nervously.

"Ms Smoak is willing to see you, Mr Queen." Nurse Sadlier said. "However, considering she is still recovering, you have 60 minutes. It's also very late and Ms Smoak needs her rest."

Oliver nodded.

"Thank you, Nurse Sadlier. May I ask…?" He then paused for a moment. "Could I please bring her the presents I got her? I have… I would feel…"

Nurse Sadlier looked at him, he could tell she was about to tell him no. He took a breath again and carefully added,

"Maybe it would cheer her up a bit."

"As much as I'd like to decline your wish, I do agree that it would make her feel better." Nurse Sadlier said. "Considering what she's been through, still going through… She could need the cheering up."

"Thank you." Oliver gently said, as he waited by the door for as Nurse Sadlier went to her office to pick up the flowers and the chocolate box.

Felicity had decided to get out of bed and make her way to the bedroom, as she knew she must look as horrible as she felt.

Considering she had spent the last few weeks in a hospital bed, she was in no shape what so ever to even be able to get out of bed, the constant ache in her limbs reminded her of that, but she was determined. She wouldn't allowing Oliver to see herself like this, pale and gross and… not like herself.

She made it to the bathroom with stumbling steps, and she almost fell towards the sink, grabbing onto it and letting out a silent gasp as the pain hit through her like a bolt of lightning. Her hands were starting to shake and she had to take deep, slow breaths for the pain to ease, slowly disappearing.

She then looked at her reflection in her mirror, but to her own surprise, she wasn't shocked by what she was seeing in the mirror: her face pale, black circles under her eyes, her blonde hair tasselled.

"Okay… I can work with this…" She mumbled, leaning down to splash some water on her face. She then pinched her cheeks a bit, trying to get some colour on them. She used her fingers, due to the lack of a brush, to try to straighten out her tangled hair. It helped solely a bit.

She watched her reflection in the mirror again and even if the change wasn't great at all, it would had to do for now.

She slowly and carefully made it out of the bathroom and as she got back to her bed, sitting down, the door opened.

Felicity looked up and she was looking at…

Oliver.

Oliver had received the flowers and the box of chocolates from Nurse Sadlier and he had his hand on the door handle to Felicity's room.

He'd waited for a second, as he was gathering courage to enter that room. Why, he wasn't sure, other than he knew Felicity was on the other side of that door and things would never be the same once he entered the room.

He'd taken a deep breath and opened the door.

As he stepped into the room and saw her sitting on the edge of the bed, his breath hitched when their eyes met…

Felicity.

Felicity let out a silent gasp, considering how long it had been since she's seen him and also…

He looked more handsome than ever, but there was also something different about him. The way his lips parted slightly when he'd stepped in and how his face expression had totally changed, softened, when he'd seen her.

"Hi…" She carefully said.

Oliver took a deep breath, watching Felicity. She looked like herself, even with the fact that her complexion was incredibly pale, her blonde hair was a tasselled mess and her eyes looked tired. Nevertheless, Felicity was more beautiful than Oliver had ever seen her.

"Hey…" He replied, just as carefully.

None of them said anything for a few moments, they were just watching each other, taking the other's presence in.

Felicity then noticed he was holding something, a bouquet of flowers, peonies to be more exact, and her favourites. Then she saw the box with the logo from Chocolate Art, her absolute favourite chocolate boutique. Again, her favourites!

For some reason, she didn't know for what exactly than it was incredibly sweet and her chest tightened when thinking about it, and all of a sudden she was smiling. Like, really smiling…

The endearing grin Felicity gave Oliver, made his heart beat just a little faster.

He went days, _weeks_, without seeing her smile or knowing if he ever would again. That realization slams him hard in the chest and causes his breath to catch in his throat.

Lost in the onslaught of emotion, Oliver makes his way across the room, basically running, until he reaches her, sitting down on a chair next to her bed.

As he grabs her hand, he's trying to say something but nothing will come out.

Felicity, seeing this, and her hands fell on top of his, and maybe it's like a heavy weight falling of her shoulders now that Oliver was here or maybe it's all the feelings of doubt, all the heart ache and feelings of… Oliver abandoning her are collecting themselves and she felt the tears springing on and she let them fall.

"Hey, hey, hey. I'm here now, okay?" A hand reached up to cradle her face, Oliver's soothing yet insistent voice stopping her from going any further. "I'm here, and I'm with you. You're safe. It's all going to be okay."

Felicity closed her eyes and leaned into the palm of his hand, extended feelings of great relief rushing over her, knowing that she was completely safe now that Oliver's here. Her eyes remained shut as she whispers her response.

"I can't imagine my life without you in it."

"You don't have to."

Oliver leaned in without realizing to press a soft, tender kiss to Felicity's lips. His hand cradled the base of her head, fingers sliding between soft strands of hair as he changed their angle to deepen the kiss.

When they broke apart he didn't move away, opting instead to rest his forehead against hers and embrace the feeling of finally being close to her once again. They were both slightly out of breath, lips parted and just brushing against each other with each ragged inhale.


End file.
